HM Treasury

Oil: Prices

Jonathan Evans: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the recent fall in global oil prices on the UK economy.

Andrea Leadsom: The US dollar price of crude oil has declined by around 42 per cent since its June 2014 peak, to $66 dollars per barrel in December.   Analysis by The Office for Budget Responsibility suggests that a temporary 20 per cent decline in the oil price could result in a 0.2 per cent increase in GDP and weaken CPI inflation by 0.25 per cent for one year.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic background.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many members of his Department's executive board are disabled.

Andrea Leadsom: The Treasury monitors the diversity of its executive board. This information is sensitive personal data and given the small numbers involved we could not disclose the results of our monitoring without infringing the rights of the individuals concerned.   The Treasury has an active diversity agenda and information on the diversity of Treasury’s employees by pay range is published. The most recent information is in the Treasury’s Annual Report and Accounts 2013/14 page 50, available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-annual-report.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department are paid less than the Living Wage.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) women and (ii) men.

Andrea Leadsom: No direct employees and contracted workers of HM Treasury, Office of Budget Responsibility and Debt Management Office are paid less than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation as a living wage. There are no employees on zero hour's contracts in HM Treasury, the Office of Budget Responsibility and the Debt Management Office.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) male and (b) female.

Andrea Leadsom: The gender diversity of the Treasury executive board is (a) seven men and (b) four women.

Stamp Duty Land Tax: East Sussex

Simon Kirby: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many properties sold in (a) Brighton, Kemptown constituency, (b) Brighton and Hove and (c) East Sussex County Council area attracted stamp duty land tax in the last five years for which figures are available.

Mr David Gauke: The number of transactions that fall within the scope of Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) is published annually in September in respect to the previous tax year. This contains data at Parliamentary Constituency and Local Authority level.   The figures have been reproduced in the summary table below: Summary of Stamp Duty Annual Publication EntriesNumber of TransactionYearBrighton, KemptownBrighton & HoveE.Sussex Area2009-201015405637108182010-201113345923106692011-201217075618109832012-201317125610109932013-20142040674313264

Listed Buildings: VAT

Mr Dominic Raab: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the annual cost to the Exchequer would be of reducing the rate of VAT on repairs to, and maintenance of, listed buildings from 20 per cent to five per cent.

Mr Dominic Raab: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much revenue accrued to the Exchequer from VAT on repairs to, and maintenance of, listed buildings in each of the last five years.

Mr David Gauke: No official estimate has been made of the full Exchequer effect of reducing VAT on repairs to and maintenance of listed buildings from 20 per cent to 5 per cent.   No estimate has been made of the revenue accrued to the Exchequer from VAT on repairs to, and maintenance of, listed buildings in the last five years. Data is not available on the VAT paid on repairs and maintenance to protected buildings as this is not itemised separately on VAT returns.

Co-operative Bank

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Answer of 6 January 2014, Official Report, column 160W on Celtic Football Club, whether the investigation into events at the Co-operative Bank included investigating reports of lower interest rate loans and overdraft facilities being provided to certain customers which were not available to others.

Andrea Leadsom: The Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority have announced enforcement investigations into the Co-operative Bank, which are currently ongoing.   The investigation under powers in the Financial Services Act 2012 into events at the Co-operative Bank, and the circumstances surrounding them, will not start and its detailed scope will not be confirmed until it is clear that it will not prejudice any enforcement actions the relevant authorities may take.

In Work Credit

Chris Ruane: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the value was of in-work tax credits claimed in the (a) UK and (b) Vale of Clwyd in each year since 2008.

Priti Patel: The total value of in-work Tax Credit entitlement for the UK population over the past five tax years can be found in the publication https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/384915/cwtc_awards_revised.xls. The total values of in-work Tax Credits for the Vale of Clwyd constituency have been calculated using figures in the National Statistics Publications ‘Personal tax credits: Finalised award statistics - geographical statistics’ which can be found at www.gov.uk. These figures have been provided in the table below.   Value of In-Work Tax Credits for the Vale of Clwyd (£m)2012-132011-122010-112009-102008-0927.229.329.928.727.0

Gaming Machines: Excise Duties

Fiona Bruce: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to ringfence revenue from the levy on fixed odds betting terminals to fund treatment for problem gamblers.

Priti Patel: At Budget 2014 the government announced that, from March 2015, a new higher rate of machine games duty (MGD) at 25% will be introduced for gaming machines where the charge payable for playing can exceed £5. MGD receipts go to the Consolidated Fund. This allows the government to allocate resources most efficiently across the economy.   The Responsible Gambling Trust (which is funded by the gambling industry and further donations) expects to distribute £6,292,000 on treatment, education and research in 2014/15. This provides funding to specialist charities, such as GamCare, which provide gambling addiction treatment.

Orchestras: Tax Allowances

Chris Bryant: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 2.96 of Autumn Statement 2014, how and when the Government plans to consult on an orchestra tax relief.

Mr David Gauke: As announced at Autumn Statement 2014, the government will consult on a new tax relief for orchestras in early 2015. The government will publish a consultation document early next year.

Television: Tax Allowances

Chris Bryant: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 2.94 in Autumn Statement 2014, how and when the Government plans to explore with industry whether to change high-end TV tax relief.

Mr David Gauke: The government will explore changing the high-end TV tax relief to bring its rules in line with those of the film tax relief. This would involve reducing the minimum UK expenditure requirement and modernising the cultural test. An informal consultation will take place early next year to evaluate the impact of the proposed changes.

Air Passenger Duty: Children

Mr Graham Brady: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 1.214 of the Autumn Statement 2014, what estimate he has made of the annual number of families that will be affected by the removal of Air Passenger Duty from those aged under (a) 12 and (b) 16 each year.

Priti Patel: As a result of Budget and Autumn Statement announcements on APD, over ninety-nine per cent of passengers, including many families, will see a freeze or reduction in Air Passenger Duty in 2015-16.   Budget 2014 announced a freeze in the rate of Air Passenger Duty for short-haul international and domestic flights for a fourth year running. In addition Budget 2014 reforms Air Passenger Duty with the abolition of bands C and D from 1 April 2015. This cuts tax for passengers travelling to destinations such as Brazil, India, China, South Asia and the Caribbean. Autumn Statement 2014 also announced additional family travel savings through an Air Passenger Duty exemption for children under 12 on economy tickets, with effect from 1 May 2015. From the following year, the Government will abolish economy ticket Air Passenger Duty for children under 16 altogether.   This will save a two child family £26 on economy short-haul flights and £142 on economy long-haul flights, plus adds to Budget 2014’s adult fare savings for families flying economy to destinations like the Caribbean and Australia, taking accumulative savings to £170 and £194 respectively.

Derelict Land

Mr Dominic Raab: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of reducing VAT on costs incurred in the redevelopment of brownfield sites.

Mr David Gauke: No such estimate has been made.

Public Expenditure: Females

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of the effect on women of the measures in budgets and spending reviews since May 2010.

Priti Patel: Considering gender and other aspects of equality is an integral part of HM Treasury’s approach to policy work and is conducted on an ongoing basis, including during spending reviews and budgets. This approach reflects the government’s commitment to fairness as well as to our legal obligations.   The Government has taken concrete actions to improve the position of women in the economy. 58 per cent of the 3.4 million individuals lifted out of income tax as a result of this Government’s policies are women. The Government is also providing help with childcare costs, including introducing tax-free childcare. However, as many policies impact on households containing both women and men it is often difficult to isolate the policy effects on women without making arbitrary assumptions about how incomes are shared within households.

Fuels: Prices

Jonathan Edwards: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the (a) fuel and (b) energy industry on the price of domestic fuel following falls in global oil prices.

Priti Patel: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide range of organisations and individuals in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings. However, a list of meetings with external stakeholders is published on the Treasury website. This list can be found at: http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/minister_hospitality.htm

Fuels: Prices

Jonathan Edwards: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to ensure that domestic fuel prices are adjusted following falls in the global oil price.

Priti Patel: The Government thinks it is vitally important that retail customers fully benefit from oil price falls. Customers pay more when the oil price rises and they should pay less now when oil prices have fallen. The best way to achieve this is through effective market competition, which drives prices down.

Hospices: VAT

Mr Nigel Dodds: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the announcement in the Autumn Statement of the removal of VAT for hospice charities, whether the exemption will apply to capital as well as revenue expenditure.

Priti Patel: Following the Chancellor’s announcement in the Autumn Statement that this government will refund the VAT that hospice charities incur, the government will now engage with the hospice sector, including those in Northern Ireland, in taking this policy forward to implementation.

Prime Minister

Alexandra Wilson

Lady Hermon: To ask the Prime Minister, what steps he took following representations by the hon. Member for North Down to secure the release of Alexandra Wilson from Bangor in County Down from a women's prison in Beijing in November 2014; and if he will make a statement.

Mr David Cameron: Once informed of Ms Wilson’s arrest consular staff at the British Embassy in Beijing made repeated representations to the Chinese authorities in China. Representations were also made to the Chinese Embassy in London. Ms Wilson arrived home on 19 November. Consular officials in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office remain in contact with her family.

Department for Work and Pensions

Employment Schemes

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people engaged on community work placements have received a sanction in each month since the programme started.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 03 December 2014



The available information as requested is shown in the table below. JSA Sanction Decisions - Number of individuals with an adverse benefit sanction applied due to Failure to participate in the Community Work Placement, Great Britain by month: 28 April 2014 to 30 June 2014 MonthTotalApr-140May-140Jun-14118 Source: DWP: Sanctions and Disallowance Decisions Statistics Database. Notes:1. Statistical disclosure control has been applied to protect against the identification of individual claimants.2. Information for this sanction reason is available from 28 April 2014 and the latest data available is up to 30 June 2014.3. The table above shows the number of individuals with adverse sanction decisions made for the referral reason: Failure to participate with a community work placement without good reason (CWP).4. An adverse decision is a decision to apply a sanction i.e. a decision found against the claimant so a sanction is applied.

Work Programme

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of people referred to the Work Programme at the latest date for which figures are available were identified as (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic group.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of people who had achieved sustained employment through the Work Programme at the latest date for which figures are available were identified as (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic group.

Esther McVey: The information requested to answer both questions in relation to the Work Programme referrals and job outcomes by ethnicity and current Work Programme status, up to June 2014, can be found at:   http://tabulation-tool.dwp.gov.uk/WorkProg/tabtool.html   Guidance for users is available at:   https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dwp-tabulation-tool-guidance

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) male and (b) female.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic background.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many members of his Department's executive board are disabled.

Steve Webb: The Department is unable to provide the answer to this question as, in line with Cabinet Office guidance and ONS best practice, we redact sensitive personal information where the results may show less than four individuals, thereby compromising their anonymity.   The membership of the Departmental Executive Team can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-work-pensions

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of people who have been subject to the under-occupancy penalty at the latest date for which figures are available were identified as (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic group.

Esther McVey: This information is not available, and can only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Jobcentre Plus

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to letters sent by district managers of Jobcentre Plus to hon. Members on 30 September 2014, how many such letters were sent; and what the estimated cost to his Department of sending those letters was.

Mr Mark Harper: Holding answer received on 10 December 2014



The information requested was not collated centrally by the Department. It was intended that all District Managers would write to their local Members of Parliament about Universal Credit national expansion, so that each hon. Member should have received a letter. Such letters should, as a matter of routine, be sent by second class post.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department are paid less than the Living Wage.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) women and (ii) men.

Steve Webb: The salaries of all DWP staff are at least the level of the Living Wage The Department does not hold comprehensive information for the workforces of all of our contractors. Telereal Trillium our FM contractor ensures that London based staff are paid the London Living Wage and that the minimum wage is paid elsewhere.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Michael Dugher: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people affected by the under-occupancy penalty in (a) Barnsley East constituency, (b) South Yorkshire and (c) the UK.

Esther McVey: As of August 2014 the number of Housing Benefit recipients with a reduction for under-occupancy in (a) Barnsley East constituency, (b) South Yorkshire and (C) the UK is as follows:   Barnsley East constituency1,490South Yorkshire16,577 UK figures are not available.   Source:   Stat-Xplore, Department for Work and Pensions.   Notes: 1. Statistical disclosure control has been applied to these figures to avoid the release of confidential data. August 2014 data is the latest available month. 2. This information is published at: https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/

Employment Schemes: Young People

Michael Dugher: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many businesses have applied to take on staff under the Youth Contract in (a) Barnsley East constituency, (b) Barnsley Local Authority, (c) South Yorkshire and (d) the UK since the implementation of that policy.

Esther McVey: The information requested is not readily available. The latest Youth Contract statistics are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/youth-contract-official-statistics-august-2014--2

Employment and Support Allowance: Clwyd

Susan Elan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people have been in receipt of employment and support allowance payments for more than one year in Clwyd South constituency.

Mr Mark Harper: Statistics on Employment and Support Allowance claimants are published at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dwp-statistics-tabulation-tool   Guidance for users is available at:  https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dwp-tabulation-tool-guidance

Jobseeker's Allowance: Clwyd

Susan Elan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people have been in receipt of jobseeker's allowance payments for more than one year in Clwyd South constituency.

Esther McVey: Jobseeker’s Allowance caseloads by duration are available at: http://www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/select/wizpopular.asp. These figures may include a small number of people in receipt of National Insurance credits only. Under the last Government, figures for long-term JSA were kept artificially low by moving claimants onto training allowances. This Government stopped doing that when we introduced the Work Programme, meaning we now have a true measure of the number of people claiming benefit due to unemployment.

Older Workers

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people working in his Department are over 65 years old; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Webb: DWP employs 91,272 staff of which 1531 of them are aged 65 and over. (data supplied as at 30 September 2014)

Disabled Staff

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people with a disability work in his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Webb: To build a world class Civil Service we need to recruit and retain the very best Civil Servants, on merit, irrespective of who they are and any visible or non-visible disability or difference. As at 30 September 14, DWP has 5404 disabled employees which represents 6.9% of the total workforce.  This data is based on the number of employees who have chosen to individually record their disability status on the departmental HR system. Any such declaration is voluntary and confidential. Within DWP, 85.9% of employees have chosen to declare their disability status.

Jobseeker's Allowance: Disqualification

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many jobseeker's allowance claimants have received an (a) second, (b) third and (c) fourth sanction in each quarter since January 2010.

Esther McVey: Sanctions only occur as a last resort, where supportive and co-operative work has failed to encourage the claimant to engage. The vast majority of claimants do not get sanctioned and of those who are sanctioned most receive just one sanction during their claim.   The information we have on the number of individuals receiving more than one sanction is published at:   https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/

State Retirement Pensions: Females

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department plans to take to ensure that women who have less than the 10 years' National Insurance Contributions required to qualify for a state pension will be informed of their options before introduction of the new state pension.

Steve Webb: We have launched a multi-channel campaign to help people understand the reforms to the state pension system, as well as actions people may be able to take to increase their State Pension. The campaign is testing the effectiveness of our communications channels and messages for reaching our priority audiences. The campaign has involved press, radio and online advertisements, and an enhanced package of online information at GOV.UK. We have also teamed up with YouTube to launch ‘PensionTube’, an online hub bringing together pensions-related content from the video sharing service, making it easier for people to find information both from the Government and trusted independent sources. One of the changes we are making is the introduction of the Minimum Qualifying Period, which means that people will normally need to have 10 qualifying years of National Insurance prior to reaching State Pension age in order to receive any State Pension. The introduction of the Home Responsibilities Protection scheme in 1978, the subsequent conversion of those years to qualifying years of National Insurance credits and the replacement of that scheme with credits for parents and carers in 2010 have protected National Insurance records, particularly women’s. National Insurance credits can also be awarded in other circumstances and are for the most part awarded automatically with certain benefits. Those who still have gaps in their National Insurance record may be able to increase their state pension by making voluntary National Insurance contributions. The introduction of the Minimum Qualifying Period is expected to affect a small minority of women in the UK. Indeed, by the 2030s, we expect that around 80 per cent of women reaching State Pension age will get the full rate of the new State Pension.

Social Security Benefits

Mr Russell Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, by what means and indicators his Department measures the success of performance measurement review officers.

Mr Mark Harper: The Department has a People Performance policy which is applicable to all its staff below the senior civil service level. This policy provides a framework for managing performance throughout the year, Performance Measurement review officers have key work objectives set in April at the start of the reporting year and they have, as a minimum, monthly performance discussions with their line manager. As part of managing performance a review officer will be accompanied by their line manager on a number of visits each year and in addition the line manager will telephone a number of claimants that have been visited to check the quality of that visit. At the end of the reporting year the Review Officer is given a final reporting rating.

Housing Benefit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 5 December 2014 to Question 216814, whether he plans to implement a further IT solution to ensure that local authorities have the information needed to suspend housing benefit only in cases where it is so appropriate.

Esther McVey: As reported in my last statement, the current system is working to specification; but we will continue to monitor the situation and take appropriate action if required.

Children: Maintenance

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what criteria he used to determine that the threshold at which a change in income can lead to an adjustment in child maintenance payments should be set at 25 per cent.

Steve Webb: In determining the level of threshold the criteria considered were: to set a threshold which offered a stable maintenance liability to provide greater certainty to both parents whilst also remaining fair in dealing with unexpected and major changes in circumstances; and, to also set the threshold at a level which supports operational efficiency and secures the right balance between recalculating maintenance and collection and enforcement activity.

Social Security Benefits

Mr Russell Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what training is given to staff in his Department in order for them to qualify as performance measurement review officers.

Mr Mark Harper: Performance Measurement review officers receive training in Performance Measurement processes and appropriate training in the benefits measured (Housing Benefit; Employment and Support Allowance; Job Seekers Allowance; Pension Credit). They also undertake learning on Responsible for Information Security, Handling Official Information, Remote Working Securely and Keeping Safe – Travelling and working off-site.

Social Security Benefits

Mr Russell Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, in what locations performance measurement review officers are being deployed.

Mr Mark Harper: There are Performance Measurement Review Officers that are based in DWP offices across the whole of Great Britain. They undertake benefit reviews for claimants in all parts of Great Britain apart from the Scottish Islands.

Home Office

Armed Forces: Libya

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department took to vet the Libyan personnel before their training at Bassingbourn Barracks; and if she will make a statement.

James Brokenshire: Before the start of General Purpose Force training on 11 June 2014, the UK held extensive discussions with the Libyan government on the selection and vetting of Libyan trainees. The Libyan government provided trainee candidates who had been through Libyan vetting and selection processes. These candidates were subject to additional UK vetting in Libya to ensure thoseselected met Foreign Office, Ministry of Defence and Home Office requirements on security, immigration, medical, physical, literacy, and numeracy criteria aswell as representing a distribution of trainees that was geographically representativeof Libya. Home Office visa processes included checks against UK criminal databases and a visa declaration by all trainees that confirmed they held no criminal convictionsor charges in the UK or elsewhere. We are not aware that any of those candidateswho passed UK screening had criminal convictions or faced charges at that time in theUK or elsewhere.

Borders: Security

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 19 November 2014 to Question 213850, what estimate she has made of the total number of vehicles entering the UK which were not subject to screening by either body scanning machines or dogs in the last 12 months.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 25 November 2014



We have made no such estimate as the use of screening is conducted on an intelligence led basis as part of Border Force's multi-layered approach. The screening of vehicles by Border Force is undertaken through a range of methods. These include Passive Millimetric Wave Imagers, carbon dioxide probes, body detection dogs and heart beat detectors. Border Force has investment in detection technology over the last 18 months, includes a £2 million scanner upgrade, a further £400,000 committed to infra red camera technology, and a £1.3 million investment in specialist dog search teams, at the juxtaposed controls.The selection of vehicles for screening is made on an intelligence led basis. Border Force staff, their contractors and detection technology are deployed to meet the risk. In 2013/14 Border Force and its contractors detected 18,000 clandestine attempts to enter the UK illegally at our juxtaposed controls. This represents an increase of over 60% from 2012/13. The UK and French Governments have signed a joint declaration agreeing to work together to improve the quality of border controls. Border Force deploys 7,500 specialist staff, five cutters at sea and spends £518 million a year protecting our borders.

Criminal Records

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure that a person's criminal record as used by the police and the courts includes convictions made under any previous names; and if she will make a statement.

Lynne Featherstone: All information relating to convictions for recordable offences is retained on the Police National Computer (PNC). It is the Chief Constable's responsibility, as the data owner in law, to ensure that any data recorded on the PNC is accurate. When a person is recorded on the PNC it is done so in the name they provided to the police at the time of the event. That name lasts for the lifetime of the record and aliases are recorded as and when known and records are consolidated where appropriate. When a person is arrested their fingerprints may be taken, as well as a DNA sample. The fingerprints are checked against the criminal fingerprint system (IDENT 1). The individual’s DNA profile is also checked against the National DNA Database (NDNAD). Where either of these biometric searches matches with the offender, the PNC records in relation to the previous results are automatically linked with the current arrest, regardless of the names previously used.

Antisemitism

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Government has taken to protect synagogues from terrorist attacks.

James Brokenshire: The government recognises the concerns of the Jewish community in relation to the threat from terrorism, particularly given the attack at the Jewish Museum in Brussels in May this year and the recent attack at a synagogue in Jerusalem. The threat level from international terrorism to the UK has been raised to SEVERE. This is related to the developments in Syria and Iraq where groups are planning an attack in the UK, rather than threats to specific communities. Key community contacts have been briefed by senior police leaders, neighbourhood policing teams and local Counter Terrorism Focus Desk officers, who are seeking to reassure communities that may feel vulnerable. Specialist protective security advice has also been provided to faith-based locations of worship, including Synagogues, and reassurance has been given to those at other sites who may feel vulnerable.The Police are working in partnership with the Community Security Trust (CST) and other community members to coordinate security arrangements around synagogues and other vulnerable locations.

Counter-terrorism

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Answer of 13 December 2013, Official Report, column 384W, on counter-terrorism and pursuant to the Answer of 27 October 2014 to Question 210417, under what categories the additional £2.7 million spent by local authorities in 2013-14 was counted.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 02 December 2014



In financial year 2013 – 14, £4.4 million was spent on Prevent projects and Prevent Coordinators in local authorities. £2.7million represents the spend in the second half of that year.

Immigration

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the professions of non-EU migrants who have entered the UK in the last five years.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 04 December 2014



Those looking to work in the UK use Tiers 2 and 5 of the Points Based System route. A list of Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) assigned by sponsors, by business sector, has been placed in the Library of the House. This list provides details of the certificates that have been assigned and will not necessarily have leave granted in conjunction with that CoS.

Vetting

Sir Richard Shepherd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what sanctions her Department has available to take against a Constabulary which takes over 90 working days to process a Disclosure and Barring Service application.

Karen Bradley: Holding answer received on 05 December 2014



The agreed standard for police disclosure performance is set out in a Service Level Agreement between each force and the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). The standards include a requirement for forces to complete 100% of local checks within 60 days. Where performance falls below this standard, action will be taken. The DBS will work with the force to develop and agree a recovery plan. Performance will be monitored against the plan and further action agreed as appropriate.

Vetting

Sir Richard Shepherd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when her officials last met officials from the Department for Health to consider the effect of late Disclosure and Barring clearances on the employment of hospital and care home workers.

Karen Bradley: Holding answer received on 05 December 2014



The DBS hold quarterly meetings with NHS Professionals, a DBS Registered Body which supports applicants from the hospital and care home sectors in making disclosure applications. No complaints have been raised by this Registered Body with regard to delays with applications.

Asylum

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people were employed by her Department as asylum claim caseworkers in each year since 2010.

James Brokenshire: We are not able to provide the information requested as the data we hold for the years requested is not directly comparable due to the differentiation of job roles over that time. As at January 2014, there were 309 caseworkers engaged in interviewing and making decisions on asylum cases.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many members of her Department's executive board are (a) male and (b) female.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many members of her Department's executive board are (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic background.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many members of her Department's executive board are disabled.

Karen Bradley: As at 31 March 2014, there were (a) 9 male and (b) 5 female members of the Home Office Supervisory Board.As at 31 March 2014, the members of the Home Office Supervisory Board were (a) 36% white British and (b) 0% from any other ethnic background. The remaining 64% of Home Office Supervisory Board members have not declared their ethnicity.As at 31 March 2014, fewer than 5 Home Office Supervisory Board members declared a disability. Data on ethnicity and disability has been reported and anonymised in line with the requirements of the Data Protection Act and in line with the Code of Practice for the UK Statistics Authority. The racial or ethnic identity with which an individual chooses to identify is not self-evident. Information about the racial or ethnic background of an individual is sensitive personal data as defined by section 2 of the Data Protection Act 1998. It would be inappropriate to disclose this information unless the individual concerned had given explicit consent or had taken steps to put the information in the public domain.

HM Passport Office

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 5 December 2014 to Question 216273, on HM Passport Offices, what estimate she has made of the average cost to her Department of (a) redundancy payments and (b) recruitment costs, of re-hiring a former employee.

Karen Bradley: Holding answer received on 11 December 2014



In 2012/13 and 2013/14, 20 members of staff in Her Majesty’s Passport Office were made compulsorily redundant at a total cost of £429,000. The average cost of these redundancies was £ 21,450.Recruitment costs are not, however, held centrally and provision of this information could therefore only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Radicalism: Internet

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to counter the use of the internet as a means of radicalisation.

James Brokenshire: In dealing with the challenge of terrorist and extremist content online, we must both restrict access to such content, and build the capabilities of civil society groups to promote positive alternatives. We have made considerable progress in limiting the accessibility and circulation of terrorist material. Since February 2010, the police Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit (CTIRU) has secured the removal of more than 65,000 pieces of content, with over 46,000 of these removed since the start of this year. There is a clear role for the internet industry and responsible providers are working with us to take down this content and safeguard their users. We are also committed to building the capabilities of civil society groups and promoting moderate voices to deliver powerful counter narratives. This involves working with a number of digital industry specialists, to provide training for groups to help build an effective online presence.

Firearms: Clwyd

Susan Elan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many firearms certificates were issued in Clwyd South constituency in the last five years.

Lynne Featherstone: Firearms statistics are compiled by police force area and not by constituencies. The generic term ‘firearm’ covers both firearms and shotguns. The number of firearm certificates (firearm and shotgun) issued (new and renewal) in South Wales in the last five years totals 9,893.

Furniture

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many desks are in her Department's main building; how many such desks are (a) owned and (b) leased by her Department; and what the cost is per desk of leasing.

Karen Bradley: Following the recent relocation of the Department for Communities and Local Government to 2 Marsham Street, making good use of the Government estate, there are 4,350 desks provided for them and for the Home Office. 87% of these desks are provided via the PFI contract signed by the previous administration. The remainder are owned by the two Departments including some additional desks where delivery is imminent. There are no leased desks currently provided. The annual running cost saving to the taxpayer enabled by the consolidation of the estate is £24 million.

Drugs: USA

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the comments by US Assistant Secretary of State William Brownfield on 9 October 2014, on the UN drug control conventions, what recent discussions her Department has had with its US counterparts on drug policy.

Lynne Featherstone: The coalition government has regular conversations with the US Government through a range of bilateral and multilateral forums. We continue to work with the US to promote a modern, balanced and evidence-based international approach to drugs within the UN drug control conventions.Home Office Ministers have meetings with a wide variety of international partners, as well as organisations and individuals in the public and private sectors, as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of these meetings are passed to the Cabinet Office on a quarterly basis and are subsequently published on the Gov.uk website: http://data.gov.uk/dataset/ministerial-data-home-office.

Immigration

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effect of the minimum earnings threshold needed for a spouse to apply for indefinite leave to remain in the UK on (a) people on low incomes and (b) family life.

James Brokenshire: It is right that family migrants coming to settle in the UK and their sponsor should be able to support themselves and any dependants. The minimum income threshold under the family Immigration Rules for sponsoring a non-European Economic Area national spouse or partner and any dependent children to come to or remain in the UK aims to prevent burdens on the taxpayer and promote integration. Its level reflects advice from the independent Migration Advisory Committee on the income which means a family settled in the UK will generally cease to be able to access income-related benefits. Under the minimum probationary period of 5 years before a spouse or partner can apply for settlement under the new family Rules implemented on 9 July 2012, applications for indefinite leave to remain in the UK which have to meet the minimum income threshold will not be made before 2017. In its 11 July 2014 judgment in MM and Others the Court of Appeal upheld the lawfulness of the minimum income threshold and found that it strikes a fair balance between the interests of those affected and the community in general.

Campsfield House Immigration Removal Centre

Mr Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what reports she has received of the police response when called out to an alleged assault at Campsfield House immigration centre on 29 November 2014.

Mr Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish the statement sent by her Department to Baroness Lister on 1 December on the alleged assault and subsequent protest at Campsfield House immigration centre on 29 November.

James Brokenshire: Mitie, the service provider for Campsfield House IRC, was in contact with the police during the protest at the centre. The police were advised of the circumstances of the use of control and restraint. No detainees were injured and nobody required hospital treatment. No complaints of assault have been made to the Home Office as of 10 December. At her request, Baroness Lister was provided with some background information relating to the protest at Campsfield.

Asylum

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 25 November 2014 to Question 215259, for what reason that Answer did not refer to the actual average waiting time for asylum seekers to receive an appointment for an initial screening interview; and if she will provide that information.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office has an internal target of 10 days from the initial point of contact to the point the customer attends the unit. This was introduced at the start of the current financial year and we have remained within that target for the year to date.The current average time an asylum seeker waits before attending an appointment is 10 days. This data has been derived from internal management information and should therefore be treated as provisional and subject to change. This information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols. This figure relates to appointments made between 1st June 2013 and 31st May 2014.

Homophobia

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many homophobic hate crimes were committed against people of Asian ethnicity in each year since May 2010.

Lynne Featherstone: The Home Office does not hold this information. The police recorded hate crime data collected and published by the Home Office does not include ethnicity of the victim.

Detention Centres

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average cost of transferring a person between immigration removal centres is.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office has a contract with Tascor in respect of the transfer of immigration detainees between immigration removal centres. This is based on a rate per mile, the detail of which is commercially confidential.

Proceeds of Crime

Jack Dromey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the results were of the Asset Recovery Incentivisation Scheme review.

Karen Bradley: The review’s findings are due to be presented to the Criminal Finances Board on 16 December. Recommendations arising from the review will be submitted to Ministers early in 2015.

Police and Crime Commissioners

Mr Dominic Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the total cost has been of all Police and Crime Commissioner elections to date.

Mike Penning: The total cost of the national Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) elections in November 2012 was £66.8 million, including £3.6 million that the ElectoralCommission spent on mailing booklets. The final costs of the two PCC by-elections will not be known until all Returning Officers have submitted their expense claims.

Food: Theft

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what representations she has received on changes in the level of theft of food from shops; and what discussions she has had with stakeholders on this issue.

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the change in the rate of food theft since 2010.

Lynne Featherstone: Holding answer received on 15 December 2014



The Home Office does not hold data centrally on the number of incidents of food theft. Police recorded crime data held by the Home Office records numbers of thefts, but does not separately identify those involving food.At a national level, the National Retail Crime Steering Group, chaired by the Minister for Crime Prevention, brings together representatives from Government, law enforcement and retail organisations, both large and small. The Steering Group is intended to identify retail crime issues of national concern and provide a forum for information sharing and agreeing action.

Construction: Work Permits

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the appropriateness of the use by the construction industry of the Construction Skills Certification Scheme card as a means of verifying that a construction worker has the right to work in the UK.

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance her Department has issued to construction companies on how to verify that a construction worker has the right to work in the UK.

James Brokenshire: Guidance is provided for all employers, including construction companies, on how to check documents to prevent illegal working in the UK. This may be found at www.gov.uk/government/collections/employers-illegal-working-penalties. In certain specified circumstances, where a person has an outstanding immigration application or appeal, an employer may also verify the work entitlement through the Home Office Employer Checking Service. The Construction Skills Certification Scheme card is not a permitted document because it does not in of itself demonstrate a right to work, nor is it a secure document. Our intention is to move to a position where non European Economic Area migrants can only demonstrate their right to work by presenting a secure Biometric Residence Permit issued by the Home Office.

Crimes of Violence: Females

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department has taken with Sussex Police and Brighton and Hove City Council to end violence against women and girls; and if she will make a statement.

Lynne Featherstone: The Coalition Government has made the tackling of violence against women and girls a high priority. Our approach is set out in our strategy, Call to End Violence Against Women and Girls, published in November 2010, together with supporting Action Plans. In 2010, this Government put stable funding in place for the first time, ring-fencing nearly £40 million for specialist local domestic and sexual violence support services, rape crisis centres, and national helplines. This includes Home Office funding of £90,000 per annum in Sussex towards the provision of Independent Domestic Violence Advisers (IDVAs), Multi Agency Risk Assessment Conferences (MARACs) and an Independent Sexual Violence Advisor (ISVA) in Brighton.Through the Female Rape Support Fund 2014-16, the Ministry of Justice are also providing funding of £60,000 per annum to both The Survivors’ Network and Lifecentre in Sussex to support female victims of rape or sexual violence. They will also provide over £300,000 between 2014 – 16 to create a new rape support centre in Crawley, dedicated to supporting female victims of rape and sexual violence.We are also supporting effective local approaches to tackling violence against women and girls by providing Police and Crime Commissioners, local authorities and healthcare commissioners with the information they need. We have delivered a series of six regional events around the country to support the effective local commissioning of violence against women and girls services, including an event held in Brighton this October.The Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Sussex has already provided £250,000 to East Sussex County Council, West Sussex County Council and Brighton and Hove City Council to enhance domestic and sexual violence services across the county, invested in over 450 police body worn video cameras to gather real time evidence, launched the Brighton and Hove Domestic Abuse drop-in surgery – making services more accessible to those who need them, and driven work with police and partners to develop an information sharing protocol to protect vulnerable girls from Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). In 2015 the PCC will be funding domestic abuse phones, with a direct 24-hour line to the police both inside and outside of their home with a GPS tracker.

Freezing of Assets

Jack Dromey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many restraint orders to freeze assets were imposed in each of the last seven financial years.

Karen Bradley: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Entry Clearances: India

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications for UK visas have been made by applicants in (a) Delhi, (b) Chandigarh, (c) Jalandhar, (d) Mumbai, (e) Pune, (f) Ahmedabad, (g) Chennai, (h) Bangalore, (i) Hyderabad, (j) Cochin, (k) Kolkata and (k) Goa in each year since January 2009.

James Brokenshire: The number of applications for UK Visas in India since 2009 can be found in the following table. UK Visa application in India since 2009   Location200920102011201220132014*Ahmedabad50,53931,66028,26124,47424,01221,458Bangalore32,28337,67338,44237,16739,28235,179Chandigarh21,90218,77717,92214,41510,9629,391Chennai32,04137,04333,41731,08531,72926,828Cochin17,12117,97014,85712,19612,66610,821Goa57 Hyderabad26,55724,50520,95219,97020,92817,699Jalandhar39,79540,08239,80933,01627,30521,762Kolkata17,35419,23520,45719,26219,82316,702Mumbai79,45380,60974,86169,82874,09166,216New Delhi77,89584,35180,24875,79478,91367,229Pune16,92220,62519,71219,76621,36718,784Grand Total411,862412,530388,938356,973361,135312,069

Entry Clearances: India

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many visas were granted to applicants from India in 2013.

James Brokenshire: The total number of applications submitted in India that were issued in 2013 was 323,575.

Passports

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many UK Emergency Travel Documents wore issued to overseas applicants in each month since June 2012.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Vetting: Self-employed

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy to enable individuals who are self-employed to apply for Disclosure and Barring Service certificates relating to themselves; and if she will make a statement.

Karen Bradley: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Vetting

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reason people resident in England who wish to request a criminal record check on themselves must approach Disclosure Scotland rather than the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Karen Bradley: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Food: Theft

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many incidents of food theft occurred in each police force area in England and Wales in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013 and (e) 2014 to date.

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many recorded incidents of shoplifting there have been by police force area in each year since 2010; and what proportion of these included theft of food.

Lynne Featherstone: Holding answer received on 15 December 2014



The Home Office does not hold data centrally on the number of incidents of food theft. Police recorded crime data held by the Home Office records numbers of thefts, but does not separately identify those involving food.Similarly, the Home Office collects statistics on the number of shoplifting incidents recorded by the police at police force area, but this does not separately identify those offences involving food. The total number of shoplifting offences in each financial year since 2010/11 are provided in the table.   



Shoplifting offences 
(Excel SpreadSheet, 31 KB)

Sexual Offences: Victim Support Schemes

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to encourage public confidence in the willingness of police forces to respond sympathetically and proactively to victims of serious sexual assault.

Lynne Featherstone: The Home Office is committed to tackling sexual violence. We want every report to be treated seriously from the point of disclosure, every victim to be treated with dignity and every investigation and every prosecution to be conducted thoroughly and professionally. We have supported the publication of data on rape for every police force in the country as a basis for improving recording and investigations of rape, and Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary have inspected the recording of rape as part of a wider crime recording audit. We expect forces to respond positively to the recommendations.The new Rape Action Plan, led by the Crown Prosecution Service and the National Policing Lead for Rape, will aid the government’s drive to ensure that every report is treated seriously and every victim is given the help they deserve. We continue to work with the police to look at ways to improve police investigations of rape and sexual assault and to ensure that their guidance on investigating and prosecuting is implemented in every police force area. Although rape and sexual assault remain under-reported crimes, reporting rates are rising. It is therefore encouraging that more victims now have the confidence to report to the police.

Entry Clearances: India

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many visa applications from India were processed using the (a) normal, (b) priority and (c) super priority visa service in 2013.

James Brokenshire: There were 361,135 visa applications processed in India during 2013. This figures includes all normal, priority and super priority applications.As detailed in the answer to PQ189241 on 24 March 2014, there were 81,755 applications in India in 2013 where applicants opted to use a priority service. A "same day" service was launched in India on 15 May 2013, and from that date to 31 December 2013, of the 81,755 applicants that used a priority service, 454 chose to use the "same day" service.

Entry Clearances: English Language

Mr Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what controls are in place to prevent personation by people sitting English language tests in connection with visa applications for travel to the UK; and if she will estimate the proportion of people who pass such tests who do so as a result of personation.

James Brokenshire: The licence with secure English language testing providers is clear that providers must put measures in place to combat abuse and any concerns regarding fraud or abuse should be reported to the Home Office. Over the lifetime of the licence, the Home Office has introduced a range of improvements including a more secure online verification system; extra identity and security checks on candidates; and further measures to ensure the test centres are secure. In addition this Government introduced a requirement that a visa officer must be satisfied that an applicant is a genuine student, tested at interview, helping to prevent abuse of the student visa system.The Home Office will not hesitate to take action where abuse is identified.

Deportation

Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much her Department has spent on removing foreign nationals in each year since 1997.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

National Border Targeting Centre

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many times the National Border Targeting Centre has telephoned carriers to deny authority to carry in each year since 2010.

James Brokenshire: The first statutory authority to carry scheme, the Security and Travel Bans Authority to Carry Scheme 2012, entered into force on 25 July 2012. No carriers were refused authority to carry any individual in 2010 or 2011. For reasons of National Security we do not disclose operational details on the scheme, including figures about the National Border Targeting Centre contacting carriers to refuse authority to travel.

Police: Airports

Mr David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the cost was of policing each airport in the East of England in each year since 2010.

Karen Bradley: This information is not held centrally.

Northern Ireland Office

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many and what proportion of (a) her Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by her Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

Mrs Theresa Villiers: My Department does not directly employ any members of staff on an hourly rate below that set by the Living Wage Foundation.In respect of staff working for companies contracted by my Department, we do not hold information regarding their ethnic background.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many and what proportion of (a) her Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by her Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) women and (ii) men.

Mrs Theresa Villiers: My Department does not directly employ any members of staff on an hourly rate below that set by the Living Wage Foundation.Of the staff working for companies contracted by my Department in our Belfast office who are paid less than the living wage, 95% are males and 5% are female.My Department’s London office does not have any direct contracts with companies. All staff such as cleaners are provided by the building management company with whom we have a lease and arrangement to provide such services.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many and what proportion of (a) her Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by her Department are paid less than the Living Wage.

Mrs Theresa Villiers: My Department does not directly employ any members of staff on an hourly rate below that set by the Living Wage Foundation.In my Department’s Belfast office, there are 21 staff (100%) working for companies contracted by the Department. Of these staff, 20 are paid less than the hourly Living Wage set by the Living Wage Foundation for employees outside London, but are paid above the minimum wage.My Department’s London office does not have any direct contracts with companies. All staff such as cleaners are provided by the building management company with whom we have a lease and arrangement to provide such services.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many members of her Department's executive board are (a) male and (b) female.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many members of her Department's executive board are disabled.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many members of her Department's executive board are (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic background.

Mrs Theresa Villiers: My current Departmental Board is made up of nine executive members & one non-executive member. Of the nine executive members eight are male and the remaining one is female. The one non-executive member is female.My Department does not keep ethnic background or disability information for its executive board members who are all civil servants. However, I can inform you that the Department’s non-executive board member has indicated ‘white’ as their ethnicity.

Furniture

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many desks are in her Department's main building; how many such desks are (a) owned and (b) leased by her Department; and what the cost is per desk of leasing.

Mrs Theresa Villiers: My Department operates from two main offices; one in Belfast and the other in London.In the Belfast office, there are 117 desks, all of which are owned by the Department.In the London office, there are 2 desks which are owned by the Department and are used by the Ministerial team. There are also 66 workstations leased at a cost of £86.33 per workstation per year.

Disabled Staff

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many people with a disability work in her Department; and if she will make a statement.

Mrs Theresa Villiers: Given the small numbers involved, it would not be appropriate to provide this information as to do so would risk the identification of the individuals concerned.

Department of Health

Diabetes

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of funding allocated to improving GPs' surgeries in the Autumn Statement will be allocated to improvements in diabetes care.

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of the funding allocated to GPs' surgeries in the Autumn Statement will be allocated to prevention programmes to tackle (a) obesity and (b) diabetes.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The additional funding announced by the Chancellor in the Autumn Statement will enable the National Health Service to continue to meet rapidly rising demand in the short term while making the investments in new services and facilities to transform care for patients and ensure that the NHS remains sustainable in the longer term.   As part of the additional funding announced, £1 billion will be invested in England over the next four years (2015-16 to 2018-19) in modern infrastructure, technology and facilities in primary and community care settings. NHS England will set out in due course their proposals for how this funding will be used.

Hospitals: Waiting Lists

Michael Dugher: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average waiting times were for (a) heart and (b) cancer operations in (i) Barnsley East constituency, (ii) Barnsley local authority area, (iii) South Yorkshire and (iv) England.

Jane Ellison: The information requested is shown in the following table. These data are from hospital episode statistics and measure the time waiting between decision to admit and admission to hospital. They are not the same as referral to treatment waiting times, which measure waiting times from referral to the start of consultant-led treatment by 18 treatment functions (subdivisions of consultant main specialties), but which do not include condition specific information.   Average time waited in 2012-13 for finished admission episodes with (a) a main operative procedure, heart and (b) a primary diagnosis of cancer  Main operative procedure, heartPrimary diagnosis of cancer, with subsequent procedure Mean(days)Median(days)Mean (days)Median (days)Barnsley East constituency52.94424.316Barnsley Local Authority54.04224.116South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw Area Team59.94225.817England50.23730.219 Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre   Notes: 1. Activity in English NHS hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector. 2. Time waited (days) is the time waited for all patients between decision to admit and admission to hospital. 3. Time waited (days) statistics from Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) are not the same as published Referral to Treatment (RTT) time waited statistics. HES provides counts and time waited for all patients between decision to admit and admission to hospital within a given period. Published RTT waiting statistics measure the time waited between referral and start of treatment. 4. A finished admission episode (FAE) is the first period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FAEs are counted against the year or month in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the period. 5. The main procedure is the first recorded procedure or intervention in each episode, usually the most resource intensive procedure or intervention performed during the episode. It is appropriate to use main procedure when looking at admission details, (eg time waited), but a more complete count of episodes with a particular procedure is obtained by looking at the main and the secondary procedures. 6. The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and 7 prior to 2002-03) diagnosis fields in the HES data set and provides the main reason why the patient was admitted to hospital. In this case the main procedure codes used were K01 - K78, Heart 7. The following ICD-10 codes were used: C00 - C97, Cancer 8. Parliamentary constituency of residence, local authority of residence and area team of residence, are the geographical areas containing the patient’s normal home address. They do not necessarily reflect where the patient was treated as they may have travelled to another parliamentary constituency for treatment. 9. The total number of eligible admissions from which the mean and median time waited are derived includes waiting list and booked admissions, but not planned admissions. A waiting list admission is one in which a patient has been admitted electively into hospital from a waiting list, having been given no date of admission at the time a decision to admit was made. Booked admissions are those in which the patient was admitted electively having been given a date at the time it was decided to admit. Planned admissions are excluded as they are usually part of a planned sequence of clinical care determined mainly on clinical criteria, which, for example, could require a series of events, perhaps taking place every three months, six months or annually. It is the case that some providers do not supply the data required to calculate a time waited on eligible episodes.

Obesity: Children

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to improve the quality of BMI tests used to test obesity in children.

Jane Ellison: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommends that body mass index (BMI) is used routinely by healthcare professionals to assess obesity in adults and children. This is outlined in the NICE guidance ‘Obesity: the prevention, identification, assessment and management of overweight and obesity in adults and children’ found at the following link:   http://guidance.nice.org.uk/CG43   NICE routinely reviews its guidance to make sure that it reflects significant new evidence and changes in clinical practice, which includes reviewing advice from the World Health Organization.   There is currently no proposal to change the collection of BMI centile data as part of the National Child Measurement Programme (NCMP), however great care is taken to ensure accuracy at the point of measurement and in the collection of the data. Public Health England publishes operational guidance to advise local NCMP commissioners and providers on how to correctly undertake the measurements and submit the data.

Lung Cancer

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 25 November 2014 to Question 215440, if he will direct his officials to undertake research to obtain the information requested in that Question; and if he will make it his policy to collect that information centrally.

Jane Ellison: There are currently no plans to make the collection of this information a policy.

Diabetes

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to improve the quality and accessibility of information available on diabetes in GPs' surgeries and pharmacies.

Jane Ellison: The NHS Health Check is a national programme that aims to prevent heart disease, stroke, diabetes and kidney disease, and raise awareness of dementia both across the population and within high risk and vulnerable groups. Public Health England (PHE) has produced an information leaflet for the NHS Health Check programme which can be made available in general practice surgeries and pharmacies. This leaflet has been produced in a number of languages and a variety of accessible formats including Easy Read and Braille. The leaflet explains what a person can expect when they receive their NHS Health Check and the risk factors for diabetes.   PHE and NHS England are setting up a programme to prevent type 2 diabetes by reducing obesity. This is a commitment in the PHE document; From evidence to action. We are currently looking at the feasibility of the diabetes prevention programme which has been operating for several years in the United States and, in that context, are considering the need to raise public awareness about diabetes.

Diabetes: Dementia

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to raise awareness of the reported links between diabetes and dementia among at-risk demographics.

Jane Ellison: The NHS Health Check programme raises awareness of diabetes and dementia among participants by assessing and discussing with them the risk factors for these diseases, among others. Participants aged between 65 and 74 are made aware of the symptoms of dementia and the existence of memory clinics in their area.   Public Health England’s (PHE) new priority work programme on dementia risk reduction will raise people’s awareness and understanding of the links between risk factors and/or pre-disposing conditions and dementia. PHE will support people to take actions to reduce their risk of dementia, including through a new healthy living marketing campaign planned for next year and aimed at 40 to 60 year olds. It will also work with NHS England and others on building dementia risk reduction messages into care and support for people with pre-disposing conditions, such as diabetes.

Diabetes

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to improve diabetes education for (a) students and (b) young people.

Jane Ellison: The social marketing programme Change4Life aims to help everyone in England to eat well, move more and live longer and in doing so contributes to tackling excess weight. Type 2 diabetes is used as an example of the potential consequences of inactivity/unhealthy diets in the Change4Life and Start4life campaigns. There is a considerable amount of information on diabetes available on NHS Choices.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department are paid less than the Living Wage.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many and what proportion of (a) him Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) women and (ii) men.

Dr Daniel Poulter: No civil servants employed by the Department earn less than the Living Wage. The Department does not routinely collect information on the salaries of employees working for its contracted companies. The Department does not hold information about the diversity details of employees of companies contracted by the Department.

Influenza: Vaccination

Michael Dugher: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people in (a) Barnsley East constituency, (b) South Yorkshire and (c) the UK have received an influenza vaccination in each of the last four years.

Jane Ellison: For Barnsley East, in 2013-14, information is available by Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) for Barnsley. For 2010-11 to 2012-13, information is available for Barnsley Primary Care Trust (PCT).   The total number of general practitioner (GP) registered persons in Barnsley PCT and clinical CCG reported to have received influenza vaccine over the past four years is as follows:   - 2010-11 Barnsley PCT – 44,962 people vaccinated; - 2011-12 Barnsley PCT – 46,460 people vaccinated; - 2012-13 Barnsley PCT – 48,382 people vaccinated; and - 2013-14 Barnsley CCG – 50,804 people vaccinated.   For South Yorkshire, in 2013-14, information is available by for South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw Area Team (AT). For 2010-11 to 2012-13, information is available for Yorkshire and Humber Strategic Health Authority (SHA).   The total number of GP registered persons in Yorkshire and Humber SHA/Yorkshire and Bassetlow AT reported to have received influenza vaccine over the past four years as follows:   - 2010-11 Yorkshire and Humber SHA – 931,104 people vaccinated; - 2011-12 Yorkshire and Humber SHA – 982,802 people vaccinated; - 2012-13 Yorkshire and Humber SHA – 1,014,958 people vaccinated; and - 2013-14 South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw Area Team – 305,887 people vaccinated.   Public Health England collects information on number vaccinated for England, not the United Kingdom.   The total number of GP registered persons in England reported to have received influenza vaccine over the past four years is as follows:   - 2010-11 England 9,049,021 vaccinated; - 2011-12 England 9,677,663 vaccinated; - 2012-13 England 9,951,942 vaccinated; and - 2013-14 England 10,769,801 vaccinated.

Drinks: Sugar

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to introduce stricter measures to prohibit the advertisement to children in supermarkets of drink products with sugar content over the maximum adult daily intake recommended by the World Health Organisation.

Jane Ellison: The Government is working in voluntary partnership with industry, including supermarkets, to take a range of actions to reduce the sugar in the food and drink they produce and retail; this can include encouraging their customers to choose healthier options; reformulating products; and providing clear nutritional labelling.   We will consider whether more needs to be done, and the most appropriate approaches to tackling sugar intake in children and adults once the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition have published their final report, Carbohydrates and Health, and we have received and considered advice from Public Health England on sugar in the diet. These are expected to be published in late spring 2015.

Multiple Births

Sir Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of multiple pregnancies result in one or more babies developing (a) cerebral palsy and (b) another long-term disability.

Dr Daniel Poulter: This information is not collected centrally.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) male and (b) female.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many members of his Department's executive board are disabled.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic background.

Dr Daniel Poulter: In line with Cabinet Office guidance we do not publish details about individuals’ protected characteristics.   The members of the executive board are:   Una O’Brien CB, Permanent Secretary Professor Dame Sally Davies, Chief Medical Officer Richard Douglas CB, Director General, Finance and NHS Jon Rouse, Director General, Social Care, Local Government and Care Partnerships Felicity Harvey CBE, Director General, Public Health Charlie Massey, Director General, Strategy and External Relations Will Cavendish CB, Director General, Innovation, Growth and Technology Tamara Finkelstein, Chief Operating Officer Catherine Bell, Non-executive member   Whilst her role is non-executive, Catherine Bell is a full member of the executive board. Catherine was appointed to provide external advice and expertise.

Autism

Mr Tom Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department plans to take to use the Care Act 2014 to promote the provision of low-level support to people with autism.

Norman Lamb: The Care Act will be implemented from April 2015.   A period of consultation is underway until 19 December on revised statutory guidance for local authorities and the NHS to implement Think Autism, the 2014 update to the 2010 Adult Autism Strategy. This includes coverage of preventing, delaying or reducing the care needs of adults with autism or their carers by providing low level preventative support and enabling people with autism to be connected with peers and with local community groups in line with the duties of the Care Act. The statutory guidance when it is issued in February 2015 will complement the existing Care Act guidance on prevention.

Multiple Births

Sir Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the implementation of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence clinical guidance for multiple pregnancies; and if he will make a statement.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The Department has not undertaken an assessment of the effectiveness of the implementation of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) clinical guidelines. These are good practice guidance, developed by experts, intended to support maternity service commissioners and providers with the delivery of evidence-based care. It is for local maternity care providers to determine how best to deliver services for women with multiple pregnancies in their area. In doing so we would expect them to give due regard to NICE guidance.

Multiple Births

Sir Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the (a) number of cases and (b) total cost of settling the claims dealt with by the NHS Litigation Authority involving the still birth, neonatal death or disability of a baby or the disability of the mother or maternal death as a result of a multiple pregnancy in each of the last 10 years.

Dr Daniel Poulter: Information on the number of obstetrics claims received between 1 April 2004 and 31 March 2014 which have involved a multiple pregnancy are set out in the following tables.   Claims not settled as a periodic payment order as at 30 November 2014: NHSLA Notification YearNo. of ClaimsDamages PaidDefence Costs PaidClaimant Costs PaidTotal Paid04/0517257,685160,195199,703617,58305/06252,230,500247,739503,0852,981,32406/07263,421,731160,890441,6754,024,29607/08252,049,637409,877750,1893,209,70208/09172,273,298314,113858,3353,445,74609/10323,505,555472,978906,3684,884,90010/11262,231,560218,757761,8003,212,11711/12181,702,994252,423403,1702,358,58712/13271,992,742299,511396,2502,688,50313/143379,250130,80335,115245,168Total24619,744,9522,667,2855,255,69027,667,927 Source: NHS Litigation Authority (NHSLA) December 2014   Claims settled as a periodic payment order as at 30 November 2014: NHSLA Notification YearNo. of ClaimsO/S DamagesDamages PaidTotal DamagesDefence Costs PaidClaimant Costs PaidTotal05/06518,259,34715,421,81733,681,164620,0361,818,62136,119,82006/0712,669,6292,660,3715,330,00083,570290,5505,704,12007/0813,332,8052,370,1955,703,000112,109190,0006,005,10908/0914,109,0003,005,0007,114,00086,046184,0007,384,04609/10211,717,6576,854,24918,571,906186,503506,00019,264,409Total1040,088,43830,311,63270,400,0701,088,2642,989,17174,477,504 Source: NHS LA December 2014 ‘Payments’ made in those years requested are not specifically going to be the payments made on the claims reported in the same period i.e. some will relate to claims which had been reported to the NHSLA prior to the ten year period requested here.

Multiple Births

Sir Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many patient safety cases involving a multiple pregnancy were reported to the (a) National Patient Safety Agency and (b) NHS Commissioning Board Special Health Authority in each of the last 10 years.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The information requested is provided in the following table: YearReported Degree of harm (severity)TotalNo HarmLowModerateSevereDeath200536373641665222006674153842316950200796030516935271,49620081,06035019339341,67620091,37343825333282,12520101,38040624622132,06720111,63946925826192,41120121,7995342402272,60220131,86854325732102,7102014*1,5774071791382,184 * Note 2014 data are incomplete The table illustrates the number of incidents reported to the National Reporting and Learning System where the incident report contained keywords indicating multiple pregnancies, from 1 January 2005 to 30 September 2014, by degree of harm reported as caused by the incident. It is important to note that the inclusion of these keywords may not always indicate the incident directly affected a multiple pregnancy; for example, reference in the incident report may be made to previous pregnancies. The harm reported may relate to the mother or to one or more foetuses/infants. The overall number of patient safety incidents reported to the National Reporting and Learning System has increased every year since its inception. Increasing numbers of reported patient safety incidents are considered to be a sign of an improving patient safety culture and increases in the number of incident reports should not be interpreted as deterioration in the safety of patients.

Dental Services

Mr David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many dentists are operating under (a) general dental services contracts and (b) personal dental services agreements in (i) Suffolk, (ii) Bedfordshire, (iii) Cambridgeshire, (iv) Essex, (v) Hertfordshire, (vi) Norfolk and (vii) England.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The information requested is shown in the following tables.  Number of dentists in England between schedule period December 2013 to November 2014Number of performers operating under GDS Contracts21,573  Number of performers operating under PDS Agreements3,687  Total25,260 Number of dentists in selected Area Teams and local authority area between schedule period December 2013 to November 2014   BaberghEast Anglia2519Forest HeathEast Anglia3019IpswichEast Anglia7429Mid SuffolkEast Anglia4118St EdmundsburyEast Anglia6512Suffolk CoastalEast Anglia542WaveneyEast Anglia677 Sub Total356106LutonHertfordshire and the South Midlands953BedfordHertfordshire and the South Midlands8755Central BedfordshireEast Anglia-1Central BedfordshireHertfordshire and the South Midlands14411Milton KeynesHertfordshire and the South Midlands10111 Sub Total42781CambridgeEast Anglia10966East CambridgeshireEast Anglia312FenlandEast Anglia3111HuntingdonshireEast Anglia5930South CambridgeshireEast Anglia564PeterboroughEast Anglia7731 Sub Total363144BasildonEssex11310BraintreeEssex6620BrentwoodEssex373Castle PointEssex55-ChelmsfordEssex909ColchesterEssex9313Epping ForestEssex533HarlowEssex47-MaldonEssex196RochfordEssex56-TendringEssex6711UttlesfordEssex27-Southend-on-SeaEssex9319ThurrockEssex671 Sub Total88395BroxbourneHertfordshire and the South Midlands6112DacorumHertfordshire and the South Midlands10710East HertfordshireHertfordshire and the South Midlands9514HertsmereHertfordshire and the South Midlands585North HertfordshireHertfordshire and the South Midlands9610St AlbansHertfordshire and the South Midlands12618StevenageHertfordshire and the South Midlands503Three RiversHertfordshire and the South Midlands4957WatfordHertfordshire and the South Midlands6711Welwyn HatfieldHertfordshire and the South Midlands566 Sub Total765146BrecklandEast Anglia816BroadlandEast Anglia8424Great YarmouthEast Anglia605King's Lynn and West NorfolkEast Anglia58-North NorfolkEast Anglia4917NorwichEast Anglia7917South NorfolkEast Anglia771 Sub Total48870  Sources: NHSBSA Dental Services Payments on line (POL)  Information entered by commissioners to administer and monitor contracts to enable payments to dentists.   NHSBSA Dental Services data warehouse The information we collect from dental activity forms (FP17s) combined with the information taken from POL   Notes:   Caveats: Data included is for contracts in England entered on POL by commissioners from Area Teams (AT). Number of performers. This will be the performer reported on an FP17 or where this is not reported this will be the provider number where there is only one performer; else the form is rejected. Performers will be counted in each contract type where they have submitted an FP17. This could be both GDS and PDS type contracts during the time period. Performers in East of England may be counted more than once as they will be counted in each local authority that they have submitted FP17s from.   Definitions: FP17: Dentists are required to submit a form called an FP17 for every course of NHS dental treatment they provide. The FP17 form can be submitted either on paper or electronically. The information contained on the FP17 form is either scanned (if a paper submission) and imported or imported directly (if an electronic submission) and stored electronically in the NHS dental services data repository (NHS DS data warehouse). FP17O: Dentists are required to submit a form called an FP17O for every course of NHS orthodontic dental treatment they provide. The FP17O form can be submitted either on paper or electronically. The information contained on the FP17O form is either scanned (if a paper submission) and imported or imported directly (if an electronic submission) and stored electronically in the NHS dental services data repository (NHS DS data warehouse). Contract Type Name :  GDS – General Dental Services PDS – Personal Dental Services   Time Period: Active Performers identified are those submitting FP17s between scheduled months of December 2013 and November 2014 where the treatment completion date falls within the financial years 2013-14 and 2014-15.   Local Authority Name - The identifying local Authority name of the Performer Number of performers - The count of the active performers   Area Team Name - The identifying Area Team code of the Performer   Data extracted from the Data Warehouse on 9 December 2014 NHS Business Services Authority Information Services

Multiple Births

Sir Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the average cost to the NHS of caring for a multiple pregnancy from conception through to the discharge home of mother and babies; and what the average tariff received by a trust for care in a multiple pregnancy was in the last 12 months.

Dr Daniel Poulter: For payment purposes, there are three separate pathway currencies covering different stages of maternity care: antenatal, delivery and postnatal. A lead provider receives a pathway price to cover the costs for the bundles of care they deliver at each of these stages. The price level is determined by patient complexity.   If a woman has one or more of the intensive resource characteristics, such as expecting twins, she is allocated to the intensive pathway for the non-delivery phases, irrespective of any other factors. The income received by the provider is the relevant tariff price multiplied by the organisation’s Market Forces Factor payment value.   Further information on the maternity pathway payment system can be found at:   https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/300549/Annex_4A_Additional_info_on_currencies_with_national_prices.pdf 2014-15 tariff - maternity pathway   Delivery phase  CodeNameOutpatient procedure tariff (£)Combined day case / ordinary elective / non-elective spell tariff (£)Long stay trimpoint (days)Per day long stay payment (for days exceeding trimpoint) (£)n/aWith complications and co-morbidities-2,1887371n/aWithout complications and co-morbidities-1,4965371  Non-delivery phases Antenatal phaseCodeNameTariff (£)n/aIntensive2,822Postnatal phaseCodeNameTariff (£)n/aIntensive805

Health Services: Suffolk

Mr David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much (a) West Suffolk Hospital NHS Trust and (b) Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust spent on salaries and wages for (i) general and senior managers, (ii) nurses and midwives and (iii) administrative and clerical staff in each year since 2009-10.

Dr Daniel Poulter: Information is not available in the format requested.   Information on the cost of (a) Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting staff, (b) Administrative and Clerical Staff and (c) Total Senior Managers and Managers, from 2009-10 to 2011-12, for West Suffolk NHS Trust (now Foundation Trust) and Ipswich NHS Trust has been attached.

Furniture

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many desks are in his Department's main building; how many such desks are (a) owned and (b) leased by his Department; and what the cost is per desk of leasing.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The Department owns 1,073 desks in Richmond House. We do not lease any.

Dental Services

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much the annual registration fee for dentists to the General Dental Council was in each year since 1984 in which that fee was levied.

Dr Daniel Poulter: Data obtained from the General Dental Council on the Annual Retention Fee for Dentists in each year since 1984 is as follows:   YearDentist retention fee1984£22.001985£22.001986£32.001987£32.001988£37.001989£37.001990£37.001991£37.001992£50.001993£50.001994£55.001995£60.001996£60.001997£90.001998£90.001999£90.002000£135.002001£135.002002£135.002003£300.002004£388.002005£396.002006£409.002007£420.002008£438.002009£438.002010£438.002011£576.002012£576.002013£576.002014£576.00

Abortion

Craig Whittaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many women were referred onwards to other care pathways after it was determined that they were being coerced into seeking an abortion in the last year for which records are available.

Jane Ellison: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 15 December 2014.The correct answer should have been:

The Department does not hold this information.   We take the issue of coercion seriously and staff working in abortion clinics are experienced and highly skilled in discussing sensitive issues with women and identifying whether there is any coercion or other risks to the woman.   Women who present for an abortion will always have the opportunity to speak to a health professional on their own at some point during the consultation. Pathways should be in place to refer women to specialised services if coercion is identified.

Jane Ellison: The Department does not hold this information.   We take the issue of coercion seriously and staff working in abortion clinics are experienced and highly skilled in discussing sensitive issues with women and identifying whether there is any coercion or other risks to the woman.   Women who present for an abortion will always have the opportunity to speak to a health professional on their own at some point during the consultation. Pathways should be in place to refer women to specialised services if coercion is identified.

Abortion

Mark Menzies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many abortions were refused on the grounds on coercion in the last year for which records are available.

Jane Ellison: The Department does hold this information.   We take the issue of coercion seriously and staff working in abortion clinics are experienced and highly skilled in discussing sensitive issues with women and identifying whether there is any coercion or other risks to the woman.   Women who present for an abortion will always have the opportunity to speak to a health professional on their own at some point during the consultation. Pathways should be in place to refer women to specialised services if coercion is identified.

Congenital Abnormalities

Mark Menzies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his Department's most recent policy framework is concerning the entitlement of women undergoing screening and diagnosis testing for foetal anomaly during pregnancy to full and informed consent, to proper support in the event of a positive result, and to their right to refuse screening or testing if they so wish.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The NHS Fetal Anomaly Screening Programme (FASP) recommends that screening is offered to all pregnant women in England to assess the risk of the baby being born with Down’s syndrome or a number of fetal anomalies (structural abnormalities with how the fetus has developed).   Where a screening test result suggests there is a higher risk of a baby being born with Down’s syndrome, or a structural fetal anomaly is suspected, a further discussion with an experienced and knowledgeable health professional is recommended to discuss the offer of diagnostic testing. When the woman wishes to take up diagnostic testing, either a chorionic villus sampling or an amniocentesis (dependant on the gestation of the pregnancy) will be performed. Where a fetal abnormality is confirmed following diagnostic testing, the programme recommends referral to an appropriate health professional for further discussion regarding the options for pregnancy management.   FASP aims to ensure that there is equal access to uniform and quality-assured screening across England and that women are provided with high quality information so they can make an informed choice about their screening options and pregnancy.   The UK National Screening Committee and FASP produce a number of leaflets and resources for both women and health professionals that clearly explain the screening options available and support the opportunity for women to make an informed choice as to whether to accept or decline the screening offered.

NHS: Costs

Nick de Bois: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average cost to the NHS of (a) a 12 minute GP consultation and (b) a walk-in accident and emergency visit without treatment was in the last  period for which figures are available.

Jane Ellison: The estimated average unit cost of a general practitioner (GP) consultation (which can include treatment) lasting 11.7 minutes1 is £37; and an attendance at a type 4 Accident and Emergency department (National Health Service walk-in centres) requiring no admission to hospital, no investigation and no significant treatment has a unit cost of £33.   Sources: Unit Costs of Health and Social Care 2013, Personal Social Services Research Unit University of Kent 2013-14 reference costs2, Department of Health   Notes: 1. Includes direct care staff costs but excludes qualification costs. 2. Reference costs are the average unit cost to National Health Service (NHS) trusts and foundation trusts of providing defined services in a given financial year to NHS patients.

Hospitals: Parking

Mr Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether he plans to ensure that the revenue needs of acute hospital foundation trusts are met when a trust removes or reduces parking charges.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The National Health Service patient, visitor and staff car parking principles published on 23 August 2014 allow patients and the public to hold the NHS locally to account where unfair parking charges and practices remain in place.   Decisions on hospital car parking based on these principles, including charging, are taken locally by both NHS foundation trusts and NHS trusts. Each type of trust will continue to take car parking income and costs into account as part of their service provision and financial planning.

Social Services: Complaints

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, which national body is responsible for national oversight of social care complaints data.

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to address regional variations in the quality of complaints advocacy in adult social care.

Norman Lamb: Each local authority is responsible for the quality of social care services it commissions. It is for individual local authorities to address any local concerns regarding complaints advocacy which they may provide.   There is no national body that has responsibility for the national oversight of complaints in social care. However, local authorities are required, pursuant to the Local Authority Social Services and National Health Service (England) Regulations 2009, to keep a record of each complaint received, the subject matter and outcome and timescales for responding. They are also obliged to make a summary of this information available to the public via an annual report.

Prescriptions: Fees and Charges

Nick de Bois: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of 16 to 59 year olds in England are not exempt from the prescription charge.

George Freeman: This information is not collected centrally. However, we estimate 90% of prescription items are dispensed without charge.

NHS: Complaints

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much his Department spent on complaints advocacy in (a) adult social care and (b) the NHS in each local authority in each of the last three years.

George Freeman: There is no Departmental allocation of funds to local authorities specifically for complaints advocacy in adult social care and no data on local spending is held centrally.   NHS Complaints Advocacy Services have from April 2014 been commissioned by local authorities who receive a non-ring fenced allocation from the Department.   From April 2013 the Department allocated £14.2 million per year for NHS Complaints Advocacy Services. Prior to April 2013 the Department commissioned advocacy services centrally at a cost of £11.7 million.   The Department does not collect data on how these allocations are spent.

NHS: Complaints

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will review the quality of Patient Advice and Liaison Service and NHS Complaints Advocacy arrangements.

George Freeman: The Government gave an undertaking in the response to Hard Truths: The Journey to Putting Patients First to review the Patient Advice and Liaison Service and NHS Complaints Advocacy arrangements. It is envisaged that both reviews will be complete by spring 2015.

Health Services: Greater London

Mr Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many members of senior management at each London (a) clinical commissioning group and (b) NHS Trust have resigned in each month since the creation of each such groups or trust.

Dr Daniel Poulter: I refer the Honourable Member to the answer I gave on 10 December 2014 to Question 217188

Bladder Cancer

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to promote awareness of bladder cancer to people under the age of 55.

Jane Ellison: Public Health England’s Be Clear on Cancer “Blood in Pee” campaign to raise awareness of the main symptom of bladder and kidney cancer targets people over the age of 50, as both of these cancers are more prevalent in people over that age. The campaign uses a wide range of media, including national television and radio advertising, to promote the key message “If you notice blood in your pee, even if it’s just the once, tell your doctor” and while this is targeted to an audience aged 50+ it is very likely that it will also be seen by the wider population.   The “Blood in Pee” campaign has run twice at a national level, following successful local and regional pilots. The national campaign ran in October – November 2013 and October – November 2014.

Motor Neurone Disease

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that people with motor neurone disease have appropriate access to support and equipment in order for their communication needs to be met.

Norman Lamb: Since 1 April 2013 NHS England has been responsible for commissioning Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC) aids for patients with complex disability whose needs require specialised assessment, including for patients with motor neurone disease. Commissioning of non-specialised AAC aids is the responsibility of local clinical commissioning groups.   NHS England has identified an additional £22.5 million funding for AAC and Environmental Controls in 2014-15. A process to identify appropriate providers, and ensure they were able to meet the AAC service specification and standards began in April this year as soon as the budget was confirmed. The specification can be found at:   www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/d01-com-dis-equ-alt-aug-comm-aids.pdf   The identification of providers was completed in August, and just under £15 million specifically for AAC was transferred to Local Area Team commissioners to agree contracts. During this process, NHS England worked closely with the Motor Neurone Disease Association to ensure that funding was equitably distributed in a fair and consistent manner. The 13 AAC providers selected are in the process of recruiting the required additional specialist therapy staff. Services are already accepting referrals and patients are being prioritised according to their clinical need, with priority being given to patients with life limiting conditions.

NHS: Finance

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the change in total public expenditure on the NHS was in each year between January 2004 and January 2014.

Dr Daniel Poulter: It is only possible to provide these figures from the 2007-08 financial year.   During the Spending Review 2010 period (ie 2011-12 to 2014-15), there have been two significant Machinery of Government changes to transfer functions and spending from the Department of Health to the Department for Communities and Local Government. The spending that related to these function added over £3 billion that would have previously been recorded in the Department of Health’s spending outturn. These changes were only backdated to 2007-08 and therefore no comparable figures are available for financial years before this date.   The following table summarises the spending outturn against the Department of Health’s total Departmental Expenditure Limit (DEL), for each financial year since 2007-08, and the change over each previous year.   Spending against total DEL includes NHS commissioners, NHS providers, the Department of Health itself and its arm’s length bodies, including Public Health England and Health Education England.Department of Health total DELChange £ m£ m2007-0884,467 2008-0991,0406,5722009-1098,4197,3802010-11100,4181,9992011-12102,8442,4262012-13105,2212,3772013-14109,7744,5532014-15113,0353,261   Notes:  Numbers taken from Department of Health Annual Report and Accounts2007-08 to 2013-14 numbers represent the final spending reported in the year-end accounts.2014-15 numbers represent the planned spending for this financial year

Parkinson's Disease: Drugs

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 8 December 2014 to Question 216992, how many incidents of medication errors involving hospital patients with Parkinson's disease resulting in no harm were reported to the National Reporting and Learning System between July and November 2014; and which reporting organisation reported each such incident.

Dr Daniel Poulter: A table is attached showing the number of patient safety incidents involving Parkinson’s disease and medicines used to treat Parkinson’s disease, which resulted in ‘no harm’ that were reported to the National Reporting and Learning System between July and November 2014, together with the reporting organisation that reported each such incident.   



Table of Incidents
(Word Document, 39.97 KB)

NHS: Finance

Mr Ben Bradshaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the outcome was of the external investigation commissioned by NHS England into NEW Devon Clinical Commissioning Group and other financially challenged trusts; and when the report of that investigation will be published.

Jane Ellison: We are advised by NHS England that Devon was one of 11 financially challenged health economies to be provided with intensive support by NHS England.   We understand that the report of this work is due to be published shortly, along with planning guidance. The planning guidance will be a joint publication with the NHS Trust Development Authority, Monitor and NHS England.

Mental Illness: Drugs

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps the NHS is taking to ensure appropriate safeguards are in place to deal with the side effects of (a) haloperidol and (b) other antipsychotic drugs.

George Freeman: When prescribing any medicine, including antipsychotic medicines like haloperidol, clinicians should take time to explain to the patient (and relatives/carers where relevant) the rationale for, and the potential side effects from, the course of treatment.   In addition, information about a medicine is provided in the product information for prescribers (through a Summary of Product Characteristics or SPC) and patients (through a Patient Information Leaflet) including information about the known side effects of the medicine, any risk factors for developing side-effects, any measures that can be taken to minimise such risks and, for patients, instances when they should return to their doctor or seek urgent medical attention.   The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) continues to monitor closely the safety of all antipsychotics. All new information about possible side effects is reviewed as it becomes available and, if needed, the MHRA will take action to minimise any risks to patients. The MHRA has communicated with healthcare professionals about the side effects of antipsychotics on a number of occasions via its monthly drug safety bulletin ‘Drug Safety Update’.

Bladder Cancer: Drugs

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many patients have had delays in treatment for cancer of the bladder as a result of shortages of the drug OncoTICE in each of the last two years.

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that OncoTICE is readily available to treat patients who have cancer of the bladder.

George Freeman: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Liverpool Wavertree (Luciana Berger) on 1 December 2014 to Questions 216172, 216173 and 216174 concerning shortages of Bacillus Calmette-Guérin bladder instillations, one of which is OncoTICE.

Hearing Impairment

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he expects to publish the Action Plan on Hearing Loss.

Norman Lamb: NHS England is leading on producing the Action Plan on Hearing Loss with input from various agencies and other government departments, including the Department of Health.   NHS England intends to publish as soon as possible but do not yet have a firm publication date.

Cervical Cancer

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will request that the Advisory Committee on Cervical Cancer Screening will hold a further review of the evidence relating to risks and benefits of cervical screening in women under 25.

Jane Ellison: As part of the United Kingdom National Screening Committee (UK NSC) review process, policies will be reviewed on a three year cycle, unless any peer reviewed papers publishes since the last review prompt the Committee to review the policy sooner. The last UK NSC review of cervical cancer screening was undertaken in 2012 and it is expected that the next review will be in 2015. There are currently no plans to ask the Advisory Committee for Cervical Screening to review the evidence to screen women under 25.

Muscular Dystrophy: Drugs

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when the NHS will make a decision on the funding for Translarna; if he will make funding available to ensure that the people who may benefit from Translarna have long-term access to that drug; what steps he is taking to ensure that emerging treatments for Duchenne muscular dystrophy are fully funded by the NHS; and if he will make a statement.

George Freeman: We understand that a draft clinical commissioning policy to cover the use of ataluren (Translarna) for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy is currently going through NHS England's standard development and decision making processes.   NHS England has advised that a meeting of its Clinical Priorities Advisory Group has been delayed whilst further work is undertaken to refine the overall decision making process. NHS England remains committed however, to ensuring that a timely decision is made about a range of investment proposals that have been put forward for the 2015-16 financial year.   NHS England continues to keep the range of services and treatments available to patients under review as new evidence and expert guidance becomes available.   On 9 December 2014, I met with the hon. Member for Leeds North West (Greg Mulholland), representatives from the Society for Mucopolysaccharide Diseases and Muscular Dystrophy Campaign, as well as the parents of three children who suffer with Morquio syndrome and Duchenne muscular dystrophy, to hear their concerns about the continued provision of innovative drugs for these conditions which have been greatly benefiting their children.

Huntington's Disease

Stuart Andrew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that people suffering from Huntington's Disease have access to appropriate care and support from healthcare professionals.

Norman Lamb: Patients with Huntington's disease have access to a range of services including the services of their general practitioner, Associated Health Professionals Neurology services, Occupational Therapy, Speech and Language therapy, local mental health services for sufferers and their families, palliative care where appropriate and online resources, including factsheets on england.nhs.uk   In addition, the Neurosciences Clinical Reference Group is continuing to work on the development of a draft Neuropsychiatry service specification and hope to have this completed for consideration in the next few months which will, if implemented, be of relevance for patients with Huntington’s Disease.

Health Professions: Regulation

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what amount each of the healthcare regulators charged for annual registration fees in each of the last five years.

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what information his Department holds on how healthcare regulators' annual registration fees are decided; and what recent representations he has received on reducing such fees.

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what information his Department holds on how many investigations have been carried out by each healthcare regulator in each of the last five years.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The regulatory bodies are independent and it is therefore for them to set their fees appropriately. All professional regulators, are aware of the Governments position, as set out in the 2011 Command Paper, `Enabling Excellence’, that we would not expect registration fees to increase, unless there is a clear and strong case that any increase is essential to ensure the exercise of statutory duties. There are eight Healthcare Professions Regulatory Bodies (excluding the Pharmaceutical Society in Northern Ireland where responsibility is devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly). The Department does not hold information on the fees of the regulatory bodies. However, we have obtained data from each of the regulatory bodies on the Annual Retention Fee for the last five years which shows:  Annual Retention Fee for Healthcare Professions Regulatory Bodies 2010-2015 YearNursing and Midwifery CouncilHealth and Care Professions CouncilGeneral Optical CouncilGeneral Medical CouncilGeneral Osteopathic CouncilGeneral Pharmaceutical CouncilGeneral Dental CouncilGeneral Chiropractic Council2014-15£100£80£290£390£570£240£576£8002013-14£100£76£260£390£610£240£576£8002012-13£76£76£260£390£655£240£576£8002011-12£76£76£270£390£750£267£576£8002010 -11£76£76£280 (Dispensing optician)£325 (Optometrist)£420£750£262£438£1,000  The Department does not hold data on the number of investigations that have been carried out by each of the healthcare professions regulatory bodies. We understand that this information is published by each of the regulatory bodies. The Department has five national bodies which have regulatory functions. They are the Care Quality Commission, Monitor, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, the Human Tissue Authority and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. None of these bodies charge an annual registration fee but they do receive income from a range of fees that are applied.

Health Professions: Regulation

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what information his Department holds on how many chairs of healthcare regulators have been drawn from outside the healthcare profession.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The Chairs of healthcare regulators are drawn from a wide range of backgrounds and are appointed through fair and open competition regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. The Department holds information contained in the Chairs application forms and CVs. Biographies of all the Chairs are in the public domain and can be found on the healthcare regulators’ websites.   OrganisationChairBiographyCare Quality CommissionDavid Priorhttp://www.cqc.org.uk/content/david-priorMonitorBaroness Hanhamhttp://live.monitor.precedenthost.co.uk/about-monitor/who-we-are/the-boardHuman Fertilisation and Embryology AuthoritySally Cheshirehttp://www.hfea.gov.uk/Sally-Cheshire.htmlHuman Tissue AuthorityMs Sharmila Nebhrajanihttp://www.hta.gov.uk/aboutus/ourpeople/authoritymembers.cfm#SharmilaMedicines and Healthcare products Regulatory AgencyProfessor Sir Michael Rawlinshttp://www.mhra.gov.uk/NewsCentre/Pressreleases/CON471139

Nurses: English Language

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that the Nursing and Midwifery Council prevents nurses who do not have requisite skills in speaking, listening to, reading and writing English from being employed in the NHS.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is the independent regulator of nurses and midwives in the United Kingdom and is responsible for operational matters concerning the discharge of its statutory duties, including registration of nurses.   However, this Government is firmly committed to improving public protection by ensuring that only healthcare professionals who have a sufficient knowledge of the English language are able to work in the UK. Accordingly, we are currently consulting the public on amending legislation to enable the NMC to apply language controls, where appropriate, for nursing and midwifery applicants from within the European Economic Area (EEA). This consultation will end on the 15 December 2014.   The NMC already requires overseas (non-EEA) applicants to complete the academic version of the International English Language Testing System achieving level 7.0 across all four aspects of listening, reading, writing and speaking.

Official Hospitality

Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much his Department has spent on events for departing staff since May 2010.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The Department does not use its budget to fund events for departing staff. Public money is not used to fund occasions such as social gatherings, retirement or office parties.

Temporary Employment

Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many contract staff work for his Department, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies; and what is the longest length of time any contractor has been working for each.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The latest published figure for the number of specialist contractors within the ‘core’ Department is 64, as at 31 October 2014.   As at 31 October, the longest length of time any specialist contractor has been working for the Department is nine years and two months.   The Executive Agencies and Executive Non-Departmental Public Bodies have supplied the information set out in the table below.   Further comprehensive data about all contract staff in these bodies can be found on the workforce information website at:   https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dh-workforce-information-2014Name of organisation  Specialist contract staff working in the organisation as at 31 October 2014  Longest length of time any specialist contractor has been working as at 31 October 2014 Public Health England1319 monthsMedicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency32 years and 4 monthsNHS England*917*Not AvailableMonitor16160 daysCare Quality Commission644 years and 7 monthsNational Institute for Health and Care Excellence485 years and 3 monthsHealth and Social Care Information Centre581 year 7 monthsHuman Fertilisation and Embryology Authority 1 12 monthsHuman Tissue Authority0Not applicable   *The NHS England figure of 917, taken from the organisation’s 2013-14 annual report and accounts, also includes other individuals engaged on a non-permanent basis such as agency staff and secondees

Thyroid Gland: Diseases

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will commission research on the potential effectiveness of liothyronine (T3) and natural desiccated thyroid for patients with hypothyroidism.

George Freeman: The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care (CLAHRC) South West Peninsula has partly supported a review of treatment for primary hypothyroidism published in 2012 in the journal Drug Design, Development and Therapy. The review considered approaches including triiodothyronine (liothyronine) therapy, trioodothyronine-levothyroxine combination therapy, and the use of natural desiccated thyroid.

Buildings

Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what building refurbishments have been carried out by his Department, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies since May 2010; what the cost was of each such refurbishment by category of expenditure; what building refurbishments are planned by his Department, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies; and what the estimated cost of each such refurbishment is.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The Department of Health has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

World Health Assembly

Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many staff from his Department, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies attended the World Health Assembly in Geneva in each year since 2010.

Jane Ellison: The number of Departmental staff and arm’s length bodies attending the World Health Assembly since 2010 is as follows.   YearDepartment of HealthAgencies/Non-Departmental Public Bodies201013020111402012112 (Health Protection Agency)2013133 (Public Health England)201411- 4 (Public Health England)- 4 (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence)

Eating Disorders

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the announcement by the Deputy Prime Minister on 2 December 2014, on a £150 million investment to transform treatment for eating disorders, what the source of that funding is.

Norman Lamb: The £150 million investment in children and adolescent mental health services, which was set out in the Autumn Statement, is additional funding being made available to the Department from HM Treasury.

NHS: Public Relations

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to reduce the number of public relations staff employed in the NHS; and if he will make a statement.

Dr Daniel Poulter: It is for local National Health Service organisations to determine the number and mix of staff they employ.

Eating Disorders

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 14 July 2014 to Question 204136, from the hon. Member for Washington and Sunderland West, if he will estimate the likely cost to the NHS of specialist eating disorder clinics in (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2014-15.

Norman Lamb: NHS England is responsible for the commissioning of specialist eating disorder services and has provided the following estimate of cost to the NHS of specialist eating disorder services in 2013-14 and 2014-15:   2013-142014-15£82.1 million£87.3 million   Notes: These costs relate to funding of the service that NHS England is solely responsible for and not the whole eating disorder pathway that will also include clinical commissioning group services. These financial values will include inpatient and outpatient services.These figures are indicative as the 2014-15 financial year is still to be completed.It is not possible to estimate the future cost of specialist eating disorder clinics based on the historic ‘reference cost’ data used in the reply to Question 204136. Reference costs are the average unit cost to National Health Service trusts and foundation trusts of providing defined services in a given financial year to NHS patients.The estimates from NHS England include both NHS service direct costs and independent sector services, and as such are not directly comparable with the reference costs.

Anaemia

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the potential contribution of improved diagnosis and management of anaemia to reductions in avoidable admission to hospital; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: It is the responsibility of general practitioners, using their clinical judgement and supported by relevant guidance, to arrange the appropriate tests and investigations that may lead to an appropriate diagnosis.   A range of guidance on the testing and treatment of anaemia is available from sources including the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Clinical Knowledge Summaries. NICE works to ensure its guidance reflects the latest available evidence.   Actively supporting patients with such conditions through better self-management, disease-management or case-management, or lifestyle interventions prevents acute exacerbations and reduces the need for emergency hospital admission.   The NHS Outcomes Framework Unplanned hospitalisation for chronic ambulatory care sensitive conditions captures data for a range of conditions including anaemia. This data is available at both national and clinical commissioning group level and the latest data report can be found at the following link: http://www.hscic.gov.uk/catalogue/PUB14887/ccg_ind_sep_14_comm.pdf

Older People

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how his Department's plans to develop a measure to record levels of loneliness will help services to establish whether more work is required to tackle loneliness amongst older men.

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress he has made on the development of a population-based measure to help determine the numbers of older people who report feeling lonely; and how this measure will build on the measures already contained in the Public Health and Adult Social Care Outcomes Frameworks.

Norman Lamb: Public Health England has commissioned the Institute of Health Equity to undertake a rapid review of the evidence around social isolation across the lifecourse. A publication, aimed at NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups and local authorities, will describe who is at risk of social isolation, at what stage of life, what impact this has on health inequalities and what works to reduce social isolation in the groups identified.   The Department considered a number of data sources that could provide data for a population-based measure of loneliness. The Department has not found a measure that would provide local authorities with sufficient information for action. The Department remains interested in exploring how the issue can be measured in the general population in a way that will support local authorities, and will retain the existing measure of social isolation in both the Public Health Outcomes Framework and the Adult Social Care Outcomes Framework.

Anaemia

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will commission research on the potential for cost savings and reductions in hospital admissions from improved diagnosis and management of anaemia.

George Freeman: The Department has no plans to commission research on this specific topic.   The Department’s National Institute for Health Research funds a wide range of research relating to the diagnosis and management of different types of anaemia.

Prescriptions

Richard Harrington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with bodies that represent pharmacists, GPs and other stakeholders on prescription direction; and if he will make a statement.

George Freeman: All patients are free to choose whichever pharmacy they wish to receive their dispensed medicines and other National Health Service pharmaceutical services. We deprecate any action which seeks unduly to influence patients towards, or away from, choosing a particular pharmacy.   The Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee, Pharmacy Voice and the British Medical Association issued a joint statement in October 2013 calling on general practitioners to avoid activities which are against good practice. A copy can be found at the following link:   http://psnc.org.uk/contract-it/pharmacy-regulation/direction-of-prescriptions/   Officials at the Department have met pharmacists’ representatives to discuss the direction of prescriptions on several occasions to hear their concerns. NHS England is currently reviewing the evidence and is meeting pharmacists’ and medical representatives this month to consider the position and what further action may be appropriate.

Cancer: Drugs

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many treatments on the Cancer Drugs Fund list scored points for addressing unmet need when appraised by the decision making panel.

George Freeman: Since April 2013, the following three drugs have been reviewed by NHS England’s Cancer Drugs Fund panel and added to the Cancer Drugs Fund list after scoring points for unmet need.   - lenalidomide (Revlimid) for transfusion-dependent anaemia due to low- or intermediate-1-risk myelodysplastic syndromes associated with an isolated deletion 5q or an isolated deletion 5q plus one other cytogenetic abnormality when other therapeutic options are insufficient or inadequate.   - ponatinib (Iclusig) for Chronic-phase, accelerated-phase, or blast-phase chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) with the T315I mutation or Philadelphia-chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (Ph+ ALL) with the T315I mutation.   - vismodegib (Erivedge) for patients with advanced basal cell carcinoma (aBCC) who are no longer appropriate for any other treatment options.   All decisions made by NHS England’s Cancer Drugs Fund panel including the detail of agreed scores for each drug reviewed by the panel since its formation in April 2013, are published on its website at:   www.england.nhs.uk/ourwork/pe/cdf/

Pancreatic Cancer: Drugs

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to ensure that NHS England acknowledges unmet need when re-evaluating treatments for pancreatic cancer on the Cancer Drugs Fund list.

George Freeman: The decision-making process adopted by the Cancer Drugs Fund panel is set out in the Standard Operating Procedures of the Fund, which are available on NHS England’s website at:   www.england.nhs.uk/ourwork/pe/cdf/   This document sets out the factors the panel will take into account, including unmet need.   NHS England has assured the Department that no patient whose treatment is currently being funded through the Fund will have funding withdrawn, as long as it is clinically appropriate that they continue to receive that treatment. In addition, no drug will be removed from the Fund where it is the only therapy for that condition.

Air Travel

Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much his Department has spent on business class flights since May 2010.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The Department of Health has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Hospitals: Inspections

Mr David Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the robustness of the methodology used in the Care Quality Commission's Intelligent monitoring process and of the quality of the management of that process.

Norman Lamb: The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and adult social care in England. The CQC is responsible for developing and consulting on its methodology for assessing whether providers are meeting the registration requirements.   Following feedback from national and local stakeholders, and working with NHS England, on 5 December the CQC completed a comprehensive review of the general practitioner (GP) intelligent monitoring (IM) data and, as a result, made a number of changes to the IM tool. Concerns were identified with five indicators. The first of these was an indicator about the ability to get a GP appointment, which has consequently been removed from GP IM. Separately, and also after publication, NHS England advised the CQC about concerns with the data that NHS England had provided for four indicators. For three, revisions were needed to the indicator construction to align with other NHS England publications, and for the remaining one there was a data error. Following the discovery of the mistakes, the CQC’s approach has been to apologise, to address the problem, and learn lessons to prevent a repeat occurrence.   The CQC is now reviewing the quality assurance of all of its outward facing analyses to ensure any necessary actions are taken to prevent a recurrence of the mistakes made. An internal audit by the CQC is also in the process of being commissioned.

Care Homes: Fees and Charges

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that care home residents can obtain information and advice before they agree to pay a top-up fee for care home accommodation, in accordance with choice of accommodation regulations under the Care Act 2014; and what guidance he is giving to local authorities on their role in providing such information and advice.

Norman Lamb: The Care and Support Statutory Guidance to local authorities was issued in October. Annex A of the Guidance sets out what local authorities are expected to do under the Care Act 2014 regarding choice of accommodation, including top-up payments. Specific guidance on information and advice about this is contained in paragraphs 51 and 52 of the Guidance.   Under section 4 of the Care Act 2014 a local authority must establish and maintain a service for providing people in its area with information and advice in relation to care and support. Local authorities should facilitate access to financial information and advice provided independently of the local authority to support people in making informed financial decisions.   Where a ‘top-up’ arrangement is being considered a local authority must provide the person who plans to make the payment with sufficient information and advice to help them understand their responsibilities, liabilities and the consequences if the arrangement breaks down, before they enter into a top-up agreement.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Regional Growth Fund

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much has been (a) committed to and (b) spent in each parliamentary constituency in England through the Regional Growth Fund in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012, (iv) 2013 and (v) 2014 to date.

Greg Clark: Holding answer received on 24 November 2014



The data is not held in the format requested. A breakdown of Regional Growth Fund committed and paid in each constituency to date for projects only is provided. The amount paid by programmes which have regional or nationwide coverage is included for completeness. Where there is a difference in the amount committed and the amount paid this reflects the payment schedules agreed with each beneficiary. Figures are rounded to the nearest £10,000 and are correct as at the 1 December.   Constituency RGF CommittedRGF Paid to date*Aldershot5,000,000-Altrincham and Sale West1,900,0001,420,000Ashton-under-Lyne1,150,0001,150,000Barnsley East130,000130,000Bassetlaw1,330,0001,330,000Batley and Spen220,000110,000Beverley and Holderness2,870,000-Birmingham, Ladywood1,860,000-Birmingham, Perry Barr2,030,000920,000Birmingham, Selly Oak2,100,000-Birmingham, Yardley1,430,000310,000Bishop Auckland130,000130,000Blackburn1,460,0001,460,000Blackley and Broughton1,190,0001,050,000Blaydon2,250,0001,030,000Blyth Valley1,010,000800,000Bootle36,010,00015,540,000Bosworth19,670,00018,800,000Bradford East2,040,0001,850,000Bradford South2,330,0001,020,000Bradford West17,600,0004,380,000Bristol West4,850,0004,170,000Burnley8,810,0008,800,000Burton4,500,0004,500,000Calder Valley800,000720,000Carlisle2,000,0002,000,000Charnwood4,170,0004,170,000Cheadle2,000,0001,410,000Chelmsford12,910,00010,900,000City of Chester1,350,000820,000Cleethorpes1,500,0001,500,000Colne Valley1,910,000960,000Congleton4,100,000100,000Coventry North West12,150,000260,000Coventry South137,200,00016,490,000Crewe and Nantwich12,360,00010,290,000Dagenham and Rainham9,300,000-Doncaster Central18,000,00013,690,000Doncaster North1,280,0001,280,000Dudley North700,000700,000Easington12,420,0006,930,000East Devon2,000,000-East Worthing and Shoreham3,230,0003,220,000Eastleigh3,130,000980,000Ellesmere Port and Neston4,060,000-Faversham and Mid Kent1,000,000-Forest of Dean1,120,000-Garston and Halewood22,220,0006,910,000Gateshead1,300,0001,240,000Gosport4,490,0002,840,000Halesowen and Rowley Regis970,000760,000Halton16,360,00014,180,000Hartlepool11,130,0001,420,000Hemsworth5,960,0002,960,000Hexham160,000160,000Heywood and Middleton480,000500,000Houghton and Sunderland South4,600,0002,030,000Huddersfield5,890,0002,660,000Hyndburn1,000,000-Jarrow3,180,0002,230,000Kenilworth and Southam9,270,0004,890,000Kingston upon Hull East6,800,000-Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle8,000,0008,000,000Kingswood1,000,000-Knowsley11,190,0005,970,000Leeds Central9,920,0006,070,000Leicester South1,070,000660,000Lichfield2,470,0001,500,000Lincoln5,580,0001,000,000Liverpool, Riverside6,730,0002,040,000Luton South35,180,00025,600,000Maidstone and The Weald4,560,000-Makerfield6,520,000-Manchester Central13,120,0009,970,000Manchester, Withington140,000140,000Meriden15,700,00015,700,000Mid Bedfordshire1,950,000-Middlesbrough8,640,0005,610,000Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland4,900,000-Newcastle upon Tyne Central10,950,00010,460,000Newcastle upon Tyne East6,600,0006,600,000Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford13,900,00010,010,000North Devon1,480,000-North Durham870,000870,000North Tyneside8,610,0008,610,000North West Durham1,440,0001,170,000North Wiltshire10,100,0003,740,000Nottingham North1,600,0001,600,000Nottingham South8,180,0002,150,000Oldham East and Saddleworth1,760,000800,000Oxford East1,560,0001,560,000Plymouth, Moor View5,010,000340,000Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport4,490,0004,490,000Portsmouth North2,250,0001,910,000Portsmouth South1,470,000790,000Redcar11,790,0008,780,000Richmond (Yorks)140,000100,000Rochdale1,600,0001,600,000Rossendale and Darwen2,150,0001,510,000Rother Valley8,240,0006,320,000Rotherham15,870,00014,850,000Salford and Eccles4,880,0002,030,000Sedgefield9,750,0005,630,000Sherwood500,000380,000South Cambridgeshire18,650,00010,490,000South Derbyshire4,340,000-South Norfolk10,440,00010,020,000South Northamptonshire1,300,000100,000South West Devon3,100,0001,780,000South West Wiltshire2,990,0002,990,000Southampton, Itchen10,900,0008,720,000Spelthorne1,030,000930,000St Helens North1,100,0001,100,000St Helens South and Whiston5,000,0005,000,000St Ives6,500,0004,390,000Stafford4,000,0004,000,000Stalybridge and Hyde2,100,0002,100,000Stockton North12,410,0006,600,000Stockton South9,380,0006,270,000Stoke-on-Trent Central6,420,0003,310,000Stoke-on-Trent North3,980,0003,960,000Stoke-on-Trent South5,050,0001,320,000Stratford-on-Avon1,200,0001,200,000Stretford and Urmston15,000,00015,000,000Sunderland Central7,750,0002,270,000Tatton2,200,000650,000Tewkesbury1,250,0001,170,000The Cotswolds120,00070,000Torbay1,200,000-Totnes1,200,0001,200,000Tynemouth370,000280,000Wakefield9,410,0009,410,000Wansbeck470,000350,000Wantage1,250,000500,000Warley500,000500,000Washington and Sunderland West19,080,00019,080,000Wells2,500,0002,500,000Wentworth and Dearne1,260,000670,000West Bromwich West1,880,0001,770,000West Lancashire1,250,000570,000West Worcestershire3,000,0002,910,000Westmorland and Lonsdale3,370,0002,430,000Wigan1,150,000900,000Wirral South12,770,0006,260,000Woking120,000120,000Wolverhampton South East650,000650,000Wolverhampton South West100,00070,000Worcester1,010,0001,010,000Yeovil37,260,00012,130,000No Constituency assigned44,460,00016,550,000National Programmes1,605,070,000991,200,000 Grand Total 2,621,730,0001,531,130,000 * A drawdown schedule is agreed with each organisation when they sign their grant offer letter but matches the beneficiary’s own investment schedule. For the recently contracted Round 5 awards, payments are scheduled through to March 2017.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

Jo Swinson: There are no direct Department for Business, Innovation and Skills employees paid less than the living wage, either nationally or in London. We do not centrally hold details such as ethnicity, of the staff working for companies contracted by the Department. On the 1 April 2014 the Secretary of State increased the wages of the lowest paid contractors to £7.85.

Apprentices

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to increase participation in apprenticeships by young people from ethnic minority backgrounds.

Nick Boles: The Government commissioned research into gender and apprenticeships and ethnicity and apprenticeships. A report was published in December 2013. Following this a new advisory group has been established to help address barriers and increase diversity within apprenticeships.   In the last two years, projects under the Skills Funding Agency’s Equality and Diversity Good Practice Fund have encouraged people from ethnic minorities to apply for apprenticeships, in organisations such as Chiltern Training, Awaaz and Heba.   Additionally the ‘Get In. Go far’ campaign launched in September this year, aims to promote apprenticeships to a wide range of potential applicants and has generated over a million hits on YouTube. The number of applications made through the Apprenticeships Vacancies website from ethnic minority candidates increased from 328,110 in 2012/13 to 382,520 in 2013/14. Full information on the number of apprenticeship applications by ethnicity is published here:   https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/371696/ApprenticeshipVacancyReportNumberofapplicationsbyAgeGenderEthnicityorSSAorProgrammeLevelNov14

Apprentices

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what proportion of apprenticeship starters in England were from each ethnic group.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what proportion of apprenticeship completers in England were from each ethnic group.

Nick Boles: Information on apprenticeship starts and achievements by ethnicity is published in supplementary tables to a Statistical First Release (SFR):   https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/378238/apprenticeships-achievements-by-geography-learner-demographics-and-sector-subject-area.xls   https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/378235/apprenticeships-starts-by-geography-learner-demographics-and-sector-subject-area.xls

Furniture

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many desks are in his Department's main building; how many such desks are (a) owned and (b) leased by his Department; and what the cost is per desk of leasing.

Jo Swinson: The main building for the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) is 1 Victoria Street, London. This is a building which the Department leases and as such leases the workstations within together with partner organisations. BIS Core occupy a total of 2,601 workstations within this building at a cost of £6067.89 per FTE. Any space within the building is sub-let via a Memorandum of Terms of Occupation agreement and is charged per square metre, not per workstation.

Research: Finance

Mr Mike Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what funding for research and development his Department has allocated to each industry sector; and what the (a) total tax receipt and (b) proportion of total tax receipts from each of those sectors was in each of the last 10 years.

Greg Clark: Holding answer received on 11 December 2014



The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) funding for industrial R&D is delivered by Innovate UK which allocates the majority of its support on a thematic rather than a sectoral basis.   The programmes and projects supported can be spread across a number of sectors, and a sectoral analysis is not available.   The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes Business Enterprise R&D (BERD) data on how much UK government as a whole funds R&D performed in businesses. This is analysed by 33 product groups but again this information doesn’t map easily to industrial sectors.   Tax receipts are a matter for HM Revenue and Customs.

Apprentices

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that employers are able to support continued learning by apprentices that they employ.

Nick Boles: Apprenticeship reforms are putting employers in the lead of designing new apprenticeship standards to meet the needs of their sectors. Standards must include substantial and sustained training and the development of transferable skills, including English and maths. Routing funding through employers will give them a greater stake in guaranteeing that they secure the most appropriate high quality training provision for their apprentices.

Adult Education: Medway

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many people in (a) Medway and (b) Gillingham and Rainham constituency are enrolled in adult skills sessions.

Nick Boles: Information on the number of adults (19+) participating in government-funded further education and skills by Parliamentary Constituency and Local Education Authority is published in a Supplementary Table, entitled FE and skills by geography and equality and diversity: participation 2002/03 to 2013/14, to a Statistical First Release (SFR). https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/fe-data-library-further-education-and-skills https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/378262/feandskills-participation-by-geography-learner-demographics.xls

Staff

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much his Department has spent on (a) consultants, (b) temporary staff and (c) contingent labour in each of the last five years; how many people have been so employed; what the length of contract of each such person was; and what equivalent civil service salary band each was on.

Jo Swinson: Under this Government’s transparency programme, details of spend is published on GOV.UK which are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications?departments%5B%5D=department-for-business-innovation-skillsTo provide the level of detail requested in relation to contingent labour would incur disproportionate cost.

Holiday Leave: Pay

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, with reference to his Department's announcement of 4 November 2014, on establishing a taskforce to assess the possible impact of the Employment Appeal Tribunal ruling on holiday pay, what the membership of that taskforce is; when that taskforce's first meeting was; and what the remit of that taskforce is.

Jo Swinson: The Taskforce is comprised of representatives from the CBI, Institute of Directors, British Chambers of Commerce, Federation of Small Businesses, the Engineering Employers Federation, the Construction Engineering Contractors Association, the British Retail Consortium and GC100. Officials from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, HM Treasury, HMRC, Cabinet Office and the Department for Work and Pensions also attend. Its first meeting took place on the 6th November 2014. The purpose of the group is to discuss ways to limit the judgment’s impact on business. This encompasses both issues relating to backpay and management of future workforce planning

Holiday Leave: Pay

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 5 December 2014 to Question 216899, what terms of reference have been set for the taskforce; and if he will publish the taskforce's membership and the date by which it has been asked to conclude its work.

Jo Swinson: The Taskforce is comprised of representatives from the CBI, Institute of Directors, British Chambers of Commerce, Federation of Small Businesses, the Engineering Employers Federation, the Construction Engineering Contractors Association, the British Retail Consortium and GC100. Officials from my Department, HM Treasury, HMRC, Cabinet Office and the Department for Work and Pensions also attend.   The purpose of the group is to discuss ways to limit the judgment’s impact on business. This encompasses both issues relating to backpay and management of future workforce planning.  The Department has set no fixed date for conclusion of the Taskforce’s work. Managing matters relating to holiday pay is an ongoing issue and we will be happy to continue this engagement with business organisations for as long as necessary.

South West

Sarah Newton: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will estimate how much his Department has spent in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly in each year since 2007-08.

Jo Swinson: This information cannot be provided without incurring disproportionate cost as the Department does not report how much spending it makes within individual Counties.   My hon Friend may wish to know that the range of activities undertaken by the Department includes direct and indirect support, advice and information all of which has associated cost. However, since May 2010 the Department has routinely published details of all expenditure. This includes the name of the supplier/recipient, the postcode, amount and purpose. This information can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/bis-spending-totals

Minimum Wage

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will estimate the total income lost each year to employees who are entitled to but are not paid the National Minimum Wage.

Jo Swinson: There is no reliable estimate of the total income lost each year as a result of non-compliance with the National Minimum Wage. Office for National Statistics estimates of the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) show that there were 236,000 jobs with pay less than the NMW held by employees aged 16 and over in April 2014. This constituted 0.9% of UK employee jobs. However, although it is our best measure of earnings, ASHE is not a complete measure of non-compliance as, for example, it does not account for employers making authorised deductions for accommodation. Calculating the income lost would require more assumptions to be made about the level of underpayment for individual jobs and would be significantly less robust. We have increased the resources available for enforcement, strengthening HMRC’s capacity to investigate complaints and target employers where the likelihood of non-compliance is highest. We have also increased the sanctions for non-compliance. Employers will face a maximum penalty of £20,000 per worker and will be publicly named and shamed. Any worker who feels they are not getting what they are due can call the Pay and Work Rights Helpline on 0800 917 2368.

Direct Mail

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department is taking to tackle unsolicited mail.

Jo Swinson: The Government has made sure that there are preference services in place for anyone who does not want to receive unsolicited mail.   There are currently two ‘opt out’ services run by the Direct Marketing Association (DMA): the Mailing Preference Service (MPS) will stop addressed mail and the “Your Choice” preference service will stop unaddressed mailings. More information about these schemes can be found on the MPS website:   http://www.mpsonline.org.uk/www.mpsonline.org.uk or by telephoning 0845 703 4599 (MPS) or 020 7291 3300 (Your Choice). These are separate opt-outs as some people may want to stop one or other type of mailing rather than both.   Royal Mail also runs its own door-to-door ‘opt out’ service, though this will only stop those unaddressed mailings delivered by Royal Mail, around a quarter of all such mail. More information about Royal Mail’s service can be found on its website (www.royalmail.com) or by phoning 01865 796964.   By registering with all three services, consumers can stop the vast majority of unsolicited mail being received. Registration is free.   To stop advertising mail from those companies with which there is some kind of direct relationship (for example, supermarkets or department stores, where the customer has a loyalty card and so on), consumers will need to contact those companies directly and ask for their personal details to be removed from direct mailing lists.

Staff

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many staff are employed in his Department's headquarter buildings.

Jo Swinson: As at 30 November 2014, 3100 staff were employed in the core-Department’s buildings throughout the UK. Of these 2555 were core-BIS staff and 545 were UKTI staff.

Apprentices: Minimum Wage

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether he plans to offer different rates of apprentice national minimum wage for apprentices of different ages and levels of experience.

Jo Swinson: This year we have asked the Low Pay Commission (LPC) to consider whether we can simplify the apprentice rate structure so that it is as clear and simple as possible, in order to support those employers who take on apprentices and to improve compliance with the National Minimum Wage. We have also asked the LPC to consider whether there should be different rates of apprentice National Minimum Wage for apprentices of different ages and levels. The LPC will report back with their recommendations in February 2015.

Minimum Wage

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many employers have successfully appealed against being named and shamed for non-payment of the national minimum wage under the revised scheme that came into force on 1 October 2013.

Jo Swinson: Under the revised Naming Scheme the Government will name all employers that have been issued with a Notice of Underpayment (NoU) unless employers meet one of the exceptional criteria or have arrears of £100 or less.   To date 3 employers have made successful representations against being named and 8 employers have not been named as they had arrears of £100 or less.   The Government has already named 55 employers. Between them they owed workers a total of over £139,000 in arrears and have been charged financial penalties totalling over £60,000. We will be naming other employers that do not comply with National Minimum Wage regulations soon. Anyone not receiving the minimum wage that they are legally entitled to should call the Pay and Work Rights Helpline on 0800 917 2368.

Ministry of Defence

Veterans: Wales

Guto Bebb: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department has taken since the Government response to the Second Report of Session 2012-13 from the Welsh Affairs Select Committee, Support for Armed Forces Veterans in Wales, to strengthen policies regarding after care services for veterans.

Anna Soubry: Holding answer received on 27 October 2014



Primary responsibility for the care of veterans lies with the NHS in England and the Devolved Administrations. The Armed Forces Covenant makes clear that veterans should enjoy the same standard of healthcare by the NHS as any other UK citizen in the area where they live, and receive priority, subject to the clinical needs of others, for conditions resulting from Service. The NHS and the Devolved Administrations are fully signed up to the Armed Forces Covenant, and the NHS in England is mandated to meet this commitment.The vast majority of Service leavers are fit and well, and no individual who is injured in the course of their duty will leave the Armed Forces until it is right for them to do so, however long that takes. For those who are being discharged with serious medical conditions, the Transition Protocol is in place to ensure continuity of care wherever the veteran resides in the UK.

Armed Forces: Chemicals

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Armed Forces personnel have reported exposure to what types of chemicals in what situations in each year since 2003.

Mr Mark Francois: Holding answer received on 05 December 2014



The information requested is shown in the table below. Information on the types of chemical used at the time of each incident is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The incidents in question were identified through the use of free text searches of computerised records; the numbers are therefore based on reporting of suspected cases, and so are not confirmed incidents. Industrial incidents involving exposure of Armed Forces Personnel1 to chemicals, by mechanism, 1 January 2003 to 31 March 2014 (latest date available)  MechanismNumber2,3Equipment Maintenance~Near Miss/Safety Failure/Equipment Failure9Normal Duties21Training/Exercise8Workplace Transport~Total41 1 Armed Forces Personnel includes all Army, Navy, Royal Marine and RAF personnel. 2 In line with Defence Statistics' rounding policy for health statistics (May 2009), and in keeping with the Office for National Statistics Guidelines, all numbers less than five have been removed and presented as '~'. Where there is only one cell in a row or column that is less than five, the next smallest number (or numbers where there are tied values) has also been removed so that numbers cannot simply be derived from totals. 3 The numbers are presented as totals for the whole time period rather than broken down by year, as to do the latter would necessitate including a disproportionate amount of tildas (~) and dashes (-) to signify numbers fewer than five.

Nuclear Weapons: Transport

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what reports his Department's Nuclear Accident and Response Organisation has produced on accidents involving the (a) road transport, (b) air transport and (c) sea shipment of nuclear weapons within, into and from the UK in the last 30 years; and if he will publish those reports on his Department's website.

Mr Philip Dunne: Definitions of the term accident have evolved over time but the term is not currently used by the MOD for nuclear weapons transportation. The nearest current equivalent is 'a Safety Alert', which is defined (in the Joint Services Publication 471) as "An abnormal event which poses a potential threat to, or causes serious concern for reactor plant, nuclear weapon, or special nuclear material safety."Based on the definitions used since 1984, there has been one accident involving a nuclear weapon during a movement by road. This involved a WE177 weapon and occurred in 1987.The reports on this accident are already in the public domain having been released following a Freedom of Information request in 2007. These can be found on the version of the MOD website archived for preservation by The National Archives via the following links:http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20121026065214/http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/FreedomOfInformation/DisclosureLog/SearchDisclosureLog/VariousIncidentsInvolvingNuclearWeaponsJanuary1987InWiltshire.htmhttp://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20070905140554/http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/AboutDefence/CorporatePublications/BoardsOfInquiry/BoardOfInquiryIntoTheWestDeanIncident.htmThere have been no air transport or sea shipment accidents.In 1987 responsibility for the transportation of nuclear weapons resided with the RAF which produced the reports, rather than the DE&S Strategic Weapons Project Team's Nuclear Accident Response Organisation (now called the Nuclear Emergency Organisation).

Defence Medical Services

Sir Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) regular and (b) reserve personnel made up Defence Medical Services in each of the last five years; what targets have been set for the recruitment of each type of personnel; and if he will make a statement.

Anna Soubry: The table below provides the trained and untrained strength of Regular and Reserve Defence Medical Service (DMS) personnel (excluding veterinary personnel) at 1 April in each of the last five years and also at 1 October 2014. Data on DMS Reserve personnel prior to 2013 is not available.  1 April 20101 April 20111 April 20121 April 20131 April 20141 October 2014Regular8,3808,3308,3208,3608,0707,990Reserve---2,9902,8502,910 The table below provides the DMS ‘baseline’ manning requirement as at 1 April in each of last five years and that for Reserves as at 1 April 2014. Like for like data on the Reserve requirement prior to 2014 is not available. The figures exclude veterinary personnel, the DMS Manning Training Margin (the number of DMS personnel expected to undertake training) and Reserve Musicians.  1 April 20101 April 20111 April 20121 April 20131 April 2014Regular7,5757,5757,5756,8476,847Reserve----4,216

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) male and (b) female.

Michael Fallon: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many members of his Department's executive board are disabled.

Michael Fallon: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department are paid less than the Living Wage.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) women and (ii) men.

Anna Soubry: The table below shows the number of civilian staff, proportion and their gender, employed by the Ministry of Defence and its Agencies who are paid less than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation (LWF) as a living wage. Department/AgencyNumbers paid less than LWF London Rate of £9.15 per hourNumbers paid less than LWF National Rate of £7.85 per hourNumber of Female Staff Number of Male staffNumber of staff as a proportion of the civilian workforceMinistry of Defence509004205302.1%United Kingdom Hydrographic Office020~202.0%Defence Support Group05010401.79%Defence Science & Technology Laboratory05020401.42%Figures have been rounded to the nearest 10.Figures are as at 8 December 2014.~ = less than 5.  Contracted workers’ rates of pay, where paid by their parent company or recruitment agency, are not visible to the Department. Neither are the rates of staff working for companies contracted by my department or its agencies. The information in respect of ethnicity is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic background.

Michael Fallon: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Kurds

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will estimate the cost of one week's mine clearing training by the Army for 40 members of the Peshmerga; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Mark Francois: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Kurds

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of providing (a) sharp shooting and (b) first aid training to Kurdish forces; which regiment will be providing that training; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Mark Francois: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Logistic Commodities and Services

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he will announce the winner of the LCS(T) contract; and what the reasons are for the time taken to announce this decision.

Mr Philip Dunne: The Logistics Commodities and Services Transformation programme is nearing completion of a comprehensive and detailed Assessment Phase. We expect to make an announcement in the New Year.

Furniture

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many desks are in his Department's main building; how many such desks are (a) owned and (b) leased by his Department; and what the cost is per desk of leasing.

Anna Soubry: All furniture in Ministry of Defence Main Building is provided as part of the PFI contract; 3,300 desks are covered. There are no direct costs per desk as these are paid under an annual unitary payment.As part of the PFI contract, these desks are covered for replacement or repair as necessary.

Middle East

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the outcomes were of the 10th regional security summit held in Manama, Bahrain from 5 to 7 December 2014.

Michael Fallon: I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 9 December 2014 on the UK-Bahrain defence agreement (Official Report, column 29WS). 



9 December 2014 UK-Bahrain Defence Aggreement
(Word Document, 25.5 KB)

Islamic State

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 24 November 2014 to Question 906180, what the outcome was of his meeting with the King and Crown Prince of Bahrain to discuss future steps to counter ISIL.

Michael Fallon: My discussions with the King and Crown Prince of Bahrain confirmed that Bahrain remains committed to tackling ISIL and working as part of the wide anti-ISIL coalition.

Islamic State

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 24 November 2014 to Question 906180, what the outcome was of his meeting with the US Defence Secretary to discuss future steps to counter ISIL.

Michael Fallon: Following the announcement of his resignation the US Secretary of Defence did not travel to the Manama Dialogue conference.

Clyde Naval Base

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the ability of the armed forces to screen the entry and egress of submarines from HMNB Clyde.

Mr Mark Francois: The UK employs a wide range of security measures to monitor the entry and egress of vessels from Her Majesty's Naval Base Clyde. For reasons of operational security, it would not be appropriate to comment in detail.

Clyde Naval Base

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what reports he has received of the sighting of a submarine periscope near HMNB Clyde.

Mr Mark Francois: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Military Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which NATO member states have sent maritime patrol aircraft to (a) RAF Lossiemouth and (b) RAF Leuchars since 15 November 2014; which aircraft were so sent; and what the purpose was of each such visit.

Mr Mark Francois: Since 15 November 2014, the US, Canada and France have sent maritime patrol aircraft to RAF Lossiemouth. The aircraft sent include P-3 Orion, Atlantique and CP-140 Aurora. We do not discuss the detail of such maritime operations as this would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.

Military Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent requests have been made to NATO countries to provide Maritime Patrol Aircraft to locate submarines within UK territorial waters.

Mr Mark Francois: We do not discuss the detail of such maritime operations as this would, or would be likely, to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.

Iraq

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the supply of spares for Tornado aircraft used for airstrikes on Iraq; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Mark Francois: There are no concerns with regard to the supply of spares for Tornado aircraft being used for airstrikes on Iraq. Routine and priority spares demands are being satisfied within agreed supply chain pipeline times.

Iraq

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Tornado aircraft are available for airstrikes on Iraq from RAF Akrotiri; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Mark Francois: There are currently eight UK Tornado GR4s based at RAF Akrotiri for operations over Iraq.

Iraq

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the availability of aircrew for Tornados used for airstrikes in Iraq; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Mark Francois: The Tornado Detachment in Akrotiri has sufficient aircrew to undertake the current level of tasking while at the same time providing appropriate crew rest periods.

European Fighter Aircraft

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when the first Typhoons will be combat ready following their upgrade.

Mr Philip Dunne: Typhoon is combat ready. It has undertaken UK Quick Reaction Alert duties since 2007 and has proven its military worth during Operation Ellamy, fulfilling all the operational tasks asked of it. The Government is committed to a programme of continuous improvement and upgrade of Typhoon to maintain its battle-winning capabilities and export potential.

Afghanistan

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what role the Government expects the RAF to play in Afghanistan after 2014.

Mr Mark Francois: The UK will have around 470 military personnel, drawn from the RAF and the other two Services, in Afghanistan after 2014.

South West

Sarah Newton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will estimate how much his Department spent has spent in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly in each year since 2007-08.

Anna Soubry: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) does not hold this data. The MOD ceased making estimates of regional direct expenditure after 2007-08, since they did not directly support our policymaking or military operations.

Contracts

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many contracts his Department has held with private military companies in each year since 2008; what the cost of those contracts was; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Philip Dunne: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Travellers

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he has taken to develop inclusive practices and community cohesion guidance with respect to Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities.

Brandon Lewis: The Government's approach to integration is set out in "Creating the conditions for integration", published in February 2012. Instead of large scale, centrally led and funded programmes our approach is to enable civil society and local areas to take action on integration issues that are important to them. We have moved away from a focus on single issues and specific groups, but we nonethless recognise that Gypsies and Travellers experience inequalites in a number of important areas. The Ministerial Working Group on Reducing Inequalities Experienced by Gypsies and Travellers published a progress report in April 2012, which made 28 commitments from across Government on reducing inequalities in these communities. We are currently reviewing progress on those commitments and will publish a further report in due course.

Private Rented Housing

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what proportion of people in private rented accommodation are (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic group.

Brandon Lewis: According to the English Housing Survey in 2012-13 in England, 72% of households in the private rented sector were white British and 28% of households in the private rented sector were from any other ethnic group.

Change of Use

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the amount of office space, in square metres, converted to residential property since the introduction of the B1(a) to C3 permitted development right in section J.1 of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) (England) Order 2013.

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what evidence his Department has sought on the effect on local businesses of the implementation of the B1(a) to C3 permitted development right in section J.1 of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) (England) Order 2013.

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many eviction notices have been served to businesses occupying premises classed as B1(a) since the introduction of the B1(a) to C3 permitted development right in section J.1 of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) (England) Order 2013.

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the change in business rate revenue to local authorities as a result of the implementation of the B1(a) to C3 permitted development right in section J.1 of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) (England) Order 2013.

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect on the number of units of affordable housing of the implementation of the B1(a) to C3 permitted development right in section J.1 of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) (England) Order 2013.

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect of the B1(a) to C3 permitted development right in section J.1 of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) (England) Order 2013.

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's publication, Technical consultation on planning, published in July 2014, what representations his Department has received in support of the proposal in that publication to extend the B1(a) to C3 permitted development right in section J.1 of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) (England) Order 2011 on a permanent basis.

Brandon Lewis: The permitted development rights to allow the change of offices to residential use were introduced in May 2013. These rights are contributing to a more efficient use of our existing building stock, and are providing badly needed new homes such as studios and one-bedroom flats for young people. This is especially true in London where there is a particularly acute need for more housing. In turn, bringing new residents to the local area also brings business and helps generate growth. This market-led approach reflects that business patterns are changing with new technology: as a whole, while there is increasing demand for new housing due to a growing population, modern firms need less physical office space than they used to. The information requested in the hon. Member’s questions is not centrally held, as the rights are overseen by local authorities. But I would observe that research published by Knight Frank in May 2014 has shown that nationally, prior approval applications have been secured for over 3.2 million square feet of new housing. Moreover, an analysis by Planning magazine last month, surveying London, Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Liverpool, Newcastle, Nottingham, Manchester and Sheffield, estimated that a total of 17,425 new homes have been given permission across those specific cities. I appreciate that the Labour Party have opposed these reforms – yet HM Opposition have failed to say exactly where they think new homes should be provided instead if they oppose such brownfield regeneration. We are considering the responses to the Technical consultation on planning which included a proposal on the change of use from offices to residential; any subsequent legislative changes will be brought forward in this Parliament. We will also publish the Government response to the consultation and an Impact Assessment in due course.

Change of Use

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to the proposal in the Government's Technical Consultation on Planning to grant permitted development rights to allow change of use from some sui generis uses to residential without the need for planning permission, what amount he has made of the potential effect of that proposal on affordable housing numbers.

Brandon Lewis: We are currently considering responses to the consultation on this matter and will publish the Government response in due course.

Local Government Finance

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when he expects to publish the provisional local government finance settlement for England, 2015 to 2016.

Kris Hopkins: Holding answer received on 11 December 2014



The provisional local government finance settlement will be published shortly.

Private Rented Housing

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when his Department will respond to the consultation on the Review of Property Conditions in the Private Rented Sector launched in February 2014.

Brandon Lewis: A response to the discussion document, Review of Property Conditions in the Private Rented Sector, will be published in the New Year.

Local Government Finance: Harrow

Mr Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much the London Borough of Harrow receives annually in Government grants; and if he will make a statement.

Kris Hopkins: In 2014-15 the London Borough of Harrow is forecast to receive £208 million in government grants, excluding mandatory housing benefits, equivalent to £2,364 per dwelling. Including mandatory housing benefits, the forecast is £338 million (source: Revenue Account budget returns). The Greater London Authority also delivers services (police, fire, transport, strategic housing and planning) in Harrow, and is forecast to receive £4.5 billion in government grants in 2014-15, equivalent to £1,311 per dwelling. Taken together, this is equivalent to £3,675 per dwelling in Harrow. Leaving aside schools spending which has changed due to the funding shift from local authorities to academies, in 2014-15 Harrow’s net current expenditure excluding education is forecast to be £293 million (source: Revenue Account budget returns). This compares with £267 million in 2009-10 (source: Revenue Outturn returns). This represents a 10% increase in cash terms.

Private Rented Housing: Fires

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of domestic fires in the private rented sector caused by electricity; and if he will make it his policy to introduce five-yearly electrical safety checks.

Penny Mordaunt: All landlords are required to keep their property safe and we expect that to include regular checks of the electrics. The Department’s Fire Kills campaign promotes electrical fire safety messages to all households. This campaign includes Electrical Fire Safety Week which this year ran from 10-16 November. The week is specifically designed to raise awareness of the importance of electrical safety and endorse the message that installations should be checked every five years. Electrical hazards are also included in the health and safety rating system. Under the system local authorities have strong powers to inspect properties and make sure they are safe, healthy and free from harm. Powers are available to local authorities where serious hazards are found in properties, including prohibiting use of the dwelling; undertaking the works directly themselves; and prosecuting the landlords, if necessary. The system provides an important safety net, ensuring that homes are safe and decent. In addition we are currently looking into the related issue of whether to require the installation of smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. The Government is committed to ensuring that tenants have confidence that the homes they are renting are safe and decent. We are using, and will continue to use, a variety of approaches to improve standards in the private rented sector.

Written Questions

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2014 to Question 208443 and to the Procedure Committee memorandum, Written parliamentary question answering performance in 2013-14, published on 11 September 2014, what assessment he has made of the reasons why his Department was the third worst performing department in 2013-14 for answering named day written questions on time.

Kris Hopkins: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Armed Forces Covenant

Gemma Doyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what resources his Department has allocated to local authorities to meet their obligations under the Armed Forces Covenant.

Brandon Lewis: Local authorities share in our national commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant and should meet their obligations from own resources. Though we have set aside £200,000 in 2014/15 from the annual Disabled Facilities Grant funding for local authorities to fund home adaptations (eg ramps, walk-in showers, stairlifts) to meet the needs of disabled ex-Service personnel who wish to live independently in their homes. We have provided grants (totalling over £1 million) with MOD, to a small number of local authorities in 2011 and 2012 to support the successful integration of retired Gurkha soldiers who wished to settle in the UK. We have also introduced a number of measures over the last few years as a contribution towards meeting the objectives of the Armed Forces Covenant to ensure that the Armed Forces Community do not face disadvantage, particularly in housing. This includes: Improved Access to Social Housing  We have introduced protection to ensure that former and current Service personnel are not disadvantaged in accessing social housing because of the disadvantages of military life. We have made sure that seriously injured personnel and former members of the Armed Forces with urgent housing needs are always given high priority for social housing, and that serving personnel and those who have recently been discharged do not lose their qualification rights because of the requirement to move from base to base. We have also encouraged local authorities to in general give sympathetic consideration to the housing needs of family members of serving or former Service personnel.Preventing Homelessness  We have introduced measures to provide support for specialist accommodation for veterans, and work with councils to prevent homelessness. We have also introduced initiatives such as Streetlink and No Second Night Out which ensure that when veterans end up sleeping rough they are offered care and support from local services. Access to home ownership Members of the Armed Forces have been given priority for Government-funded shared ownership schemes and are able to access Help to Buy: equity loan scheme. The priority status can also be transferred to bereaved spouses or civil partners. We have also worked with MOD, credit reference agencies and Royal Mail to standardise Forces’ Post Office addresses so personnel are not disadvantaged when applying for mortgages.

Written Questions

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2014 to Question 208443 and to the Procedure Committee memorandum, Written parliamentary question answering performance in 2013-14, published on 11 September 2014, what assessment he has made of the reasons why his Department was the third worst performing department in 2013-14 for answering named day written questions very late.

Kris Hopkins: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Written Questions

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2014 to Question 208443 and to the Procedure Committee memorandum, Written parliamentary question answering performance in 2013-14, published on 11 September 2014, what assessment he has made of the reasons why his Department was the third worst performing department in 2013-14 for answering ordinary written questions on time.

Kris Hopkins: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Written Questions

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2014 to Question 208443 and to the Procedure Committee memorandum, Written parliamentary question answering performance in 2013-14, published on 11 September 2014, what assessment he has made of the reasons why his Department was the second worst performing department in 2013-14 for answering ordinary written questions very late.

Kris Hopkins: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Written Questions

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2014 to Question 208443 and to the Procedure Committee memorandum, Written parliamentary question answering performance in 2013-14, published on 11 September 2014, what steps he is taking to improve the performance of his Department in answering Written Parliamentary Questions on time.

Kris Hopkins: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Non-domestic Rates

Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the number of small firms and shops in (a) England, (b) the East Riding of Yorkshire and (c) Haltemprice and Howden constituency which will be affected by the reduction in business rates.

Kris Hopkins: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Homelessness and Sleeping Rough

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of (a) homelessness and (b) rough sleeping.

Kris Hopkins: Homelessness is lower now than in 27 of the last 30 years. We have seen a 38% decrease in the number of families in Bed and Breakfast over six weeks since this time last year. This Government has supported innovation through roll-out of No Second Night Out and Streetlink which means rough sleepers are being found quicker and given the help they need to get them off the streets.

Housing: Morecambe

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will make an estimate of the council tax forgone as a result of houses being purchased by Lancaster City Council for the Chatsworth Gardens project and remaining empty.

Brandon Lewis: The Department does not collect data on the level of council tax charged to empty properties by type of owner/occupier.Unoccupied and substantially unfurnished properties, not entitled to a statutory council tax exemption, will be charged council tax at a level set out in the billing authority determination made under Section 11A of the Local Government Finance Act 1992.

Housing: Morecambe

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what funds from his Department, including legal fees, have been paid by Lancaster City Council for the purchase of privately owned properties in the West End of Morecambe during the Chatsworth Gardens project; and what the current value of these assets is.

Brandon Lewis: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Housing: Morecambe

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what annual budget Lancaster City Council is provided by his Department for the maintenance and security of properties in the Chatsworth Gardens housing project.

Brandon Lewis: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Homelessness

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the  number of people aged under 18 who were homeless in each month of 2014.

Kris Hopkins: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Business Plans

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what actions set out in his Department's business plans since June 2010 have been classified as over-due in (a) starting and (b) completing.

Kris Hopkins: The status and progress on business plans is reported on the No 10 Transparency website (www.transparency.number10.gov.uk/business-plan/2). The site contains links to the monthly archive from November 2010 through to October 2014. Progress and status on Business Plan actions are also reported in the Department’s published Annual and Mid Year Reports.

Disadvantaged

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what (a) number and (b) proportion of neighbourhood plans have been produced by areas that are in the top (i) 25 per cent and (ii) 50 per cent most deprived areas as ranked by the Index of Multiple Deprivation.

Penny Mordaunt: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Private Rented Housing

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will estimate (a) how many and (b) what proportion of tenants in the private rented sector have (i) asked for and (ii) been granted the model agreement for a shorthold assured tenancy since that model agreement was published by the Government.

Brandon Lewis: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Private Rented Housing

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to promote the take-up of the model agreement for a shorthold assured tenancy.

Brandon Lewis: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Coastal Areas

Eric Ollerenshaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to support coastal communities.

Penny Mordaunt: This Government remains committed to helping all coastal communities thrive. The Coastal Communities Fund is supporting 117 projects across the UK, to the tune of £62 million, and we are looking forward to announcing a further tranche of successful projects in the New Year.

Travellers: Caravan Sites

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to make it easier to (a) prevent and (b) remove illegal traveller encampments.

Mr Eric Pickles: This Government has given councils stronger powers to tackle unauthorised sites.   Last year, we issued clear guidance to councils, reminding them of the full range of measures they have.   But I remain concerned that councils and police commissioners are not using their powers, due to gold-plating of human rights rules. The public want to see fair play in the planning system.

Non-domestic Rates

Jackie Doyle-Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the number of small firms and shops in (a) England and (b) Thurrock which will have a reduction in business rates in 2015-16.

Penny Mordaunt: I refer my hon. Friend to my earlier answer at oral questions today to my hon. Friend, the Member for Mid Derbyshire (Pauline Latham), PQ 906620.  Our retail relief is benefitting 450 businesses in Thurrock and Small Business Rate Relief is benefiting 950 businesses. Our rates retention scheme gives authorities a strong growth incentive. Councils benefit from nearly £11 billion under the scheme.

Scotland Office

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) women and (ii) men.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office does not employ staff; all staff that join, do so on an assignment, loan or secondment from other government bodies, principally the Scottish Government and the Ministry of Justice. All staff on such arrangements are paid more than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation.Both of these bodies and other employers of Scotland Office staff hold information relating to the diversity of staff. Additionally, information on the gender breakdown of staff by grade is published in the Office’s annual report. The annual report for 2013-14 is available in the House of Commons Library.The Scotland Office has one contract which provides security for the office in Edinburgh. The Scotland Office does not set the wages paid by the contractors to its workers; however, the wage paid by the contractor is above the national minimum wage. Otherwise, the Office uses framework contracts for building services held by the Ministry of Justice and the Scottish Government.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office does not employ staff; all staff that join, do so on an assignment, loan or secondment from other government bodies, principally the Scottish Government and the Ministry of Justice. All staff on such arrangements are paid more than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation. Both of these bodies and other employers of Scotland Office staff hold information relating to the diversity of staff.The Scotland Office has one contract which provides security for the office in Edinburgh. The Scotland Office does not set the wages paid by the contractors to its workers; however, the wage paid by the contractor is above the national minimum wage. Otherwise, the Office uses framework contracts for building services held by the Ministry of Justice and the Scottish Government.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department are paid less than the Living Wage.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office does not employ staff; all staff that join, do so on an assignment, loan or secondment from other government bodies, principally the Scottish Government and the Ministry of Justice. All staff on such arrangements are paid more than the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation.The Scotland Office has one contract which provides security for the office in Edinburgh. The Scotland Office does not set the wages paid by the contractors to its workers; however, the wage paid by the contractor is above the national minimum wage. Otherwise the Office uses framework contracts for building services held by the Ministry of Justice and the Scottish Government.

Staff

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how much his Department has spent on (a) consultants, (b) temporary staff and (c) contingent labour in each of the last five years; how many people have been so employed; what the length of contract of each such person was; and what equivalent civil service salary band each was on.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office has not spent any money on consultants or contingent labour in the last five years. As the number of temporary agency staff employed in each of the years is less than 5 in each year, detailed information is not provided for privacy reasons. In the last five years the Scotland Office has spent the following on agency staff:2009-10 £78,093.652010-11 £47,332.422011-12 £21,445.632012-13 £56,081.612013-14 £77,253.38

Income Tax

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what recent discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on the implementation of the provisions of the Scotland Act 2012 which relate to the Scottish rate of income tax.

David Mundell: The Secretary of State for Scotland met Scotland’s new First Minister at the beginning of the month and discussed a wide range of issues where the two Governments can work together. Under the lead of HMRC, the UK Government works closely with the Scottish Government to deliver the fiscal changes required by the Scotland Act 2012, including defining the detail of the implementation and operation of the Scottish rate of income tax.

Women and Equalities

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, how many members of the Government Equalities Office's executive board are (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic background.

Jo Swinson: The Director of the Government Equalities Office is a member of the DCMS Executive Board. The DCMS Executive Board has 7 white British members and 1 from any other ethnic background.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, how many members of the Government Equalities Office executive board are (a) male and (b) female.

Jo Swinson: The Director of the Government Equalities Office is a member of the DCMS Executive Board. The DCMS Executive Board has 1 male and 7 female members

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, how many members of the Government Equalities Office's executive board are disabled.

Jo Swinson: The Director of the Government Equalities Office is a member of the DCMS Executive Board. No members of the DCMS Executive Board have declared a disability.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, how many and what proportion of (a) the Government Equalities Office staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by the Government Equalities Office are paid less than the Living Wage.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, how many and what proportion of (a) the Government Equalities Office's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by the Government Equalities Office who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, how many and what proportion of (a) the Government Equalities Office's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by the Government Equalities Office who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) women and (ii) men.

Jo Swinson: The Government Equalities Office (GEO) does not have any direct employees who are paid less than the living wage.GEO, as part of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, is not responsible for setting pay levels for contracted workers. This is a matter for the organisations who employ them. Where appropriate, the Department will include a clause in its contract terms and conditions encouraging suppliers to pay at least the living wage to their employees. For existing contracts where payment of the Living Wage is an issue, the Department has entered into negotiations with those suppliers to encourage to pay it.

Gender Recognition

Simon Kirby: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what progress she has made on implementing the conclusions of her Department's report, Advancing transgender equality: a plan for action, published in December 2011; and if she will make a statement.

Simon Kirby: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what progress she has made on the implementation of the report Advancing transgender equality: a plan for action; and if she will make a statement.

Jo Swinson: The Government has made good progress implementing the actions set out in Advancing transgender equality: a plan for action, and the majority have now been completed.We also continue to liaise regularly with representatives of the transgender community to understand their priorities in tackling remaining areas of inequality and discrimination

Hearing Impairment

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps the Government has taken to ensure that public and private service providers are complying with their duty under the Equality Act 2010 to take action to avoid deaf service users being placed at a substantial disadvantage.

Jo Swinson: We expect both public and private sector service providers to comply with their duty to make reasonable adjustments for deaf people, but responsibility for enforcing this in particular cases is a matter for individuals themselves who may ultimately take their case to a court or tribunal; and the Equality and Human Rights Commission. The Commission is responsible for monitoring and enforcing the equality duty in England and non-devolved bodies in Scotland and Wales. The range of enforcement tools set out for the Commission under the Equality Act 2006 also apply to the equality duty, these include: compliance notices, judicial review, assessments under section 31 of the Act, statutory agreements with employers or service providers, and interventions in legal cases. The Commission publishes guidance on the public sector equality duty and its broader technical guidance provides an authoritative and comprehensive guide to the detail of the law for anyone who needs to understand the law in depth, or apply it in practice. The Government is supporting the provision of Video Relay Services and the eAccessibility Forum. We are also looking at improving the accessibility of Government communications for deaf customers and participating in the Accessible Britain Challenge initiative, which aims to motivate communities, including local service providers, businesses, employers, community, voluntary and disabled people’s group to do more to be inclusive and accessible for disabled people.

Department for Transport

Roads: Construction

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Autumn Statement 2014, what estimate he has made of the potential increase in the carbon emissions impact of the (a) construction and (b) annual use of the new roads announced in that Statement.

Mr John Hayes: Changes in carbon emissions due to road use are assessed for each new strategic road scheme; these are reported as part of the Appraisal Summary Tables that the Highways Agency makes available when projects have been sufficiently developed. The Department has also used the National Transport Model to analyse the likely change in carbon emissions due to an investment package of the scale of the Road Investment Strategy; our analysis suggests an increase of around 0.1% in carbon emissions for Great Britain during the period of the fourth carbon budget. This increase is expected to be outweighed by the significant investment in environmental measures within the Road Investment Strategy. These include the Environment ring-fenced fund which includes provision for rapid charging points across the network, and the Cycling, Safety and Integration fund with funding for improving cycling and walking infrastructure around the Strategic Road Network. No estimate of carbon emissions associated with construction has been made.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department are paid less than the Living Wage.

Claire Perry: The Department for Transport does not pay any staff less than the living wage. The Department does not hold information about rates of pay for staff working for companies contracted out by the Department.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many members of his Department's executive board are disabled.

Claire Perry: There are 17 executive and non-executive members of the Department’s executive board and we are not aware of any who have declared themselves to be disabled. All Civil Servants are encouraged to declare their protected characteristics on the department’s equality monitoring database. This information is only accessed for statistical purposes and cannot be accessed on an individual basis. Other members of the Board are not required to declare their protected characteristic.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic background.

Claire Perry: There are 17 executive and non-executive members of the Department’s executive board and we are not aware of any who have declared themselves to be from any other ethnic background. All Civil Servants are encouraged to declare their protected characteristics on the department’s database. This information is only accessed for statistical purposes and cannot be accessed on an individual basis. Other members of the Board are not required to declare their protected characteristics.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

Claire Perry: The Department for Transport does not pay any staff less than the living wage. The Department does not hold information about rates of pay for staff working for companies contracted out by the Department.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) women and (ii) men.

Claire Perry: The Department for Transport does not pay any staff less than the living wage. The Department does not hold information about rates of pay for staff working for companies contracted out by the Department.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) male and (b) female.

Claire Perry: There are 17 executive and non-executive members of the Department’s executive board of whom (a) 11 are male and (b) 6 are female.

Dartford-Thurrock Crossing

Mr John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the number of penalty charge notices likely to be issued for failing to pay the charge at the Dartford River Crossing in the first year of operation of the Dart-Charge scheme and of the income likely to be generated from those notices.

Mr John Hayes: The Highways Agency estimates that approximately 2.1 million penalty charge notices will be will issued for vehicles not compliant with the charging scheme in the first year of operation. This figure encompasses vehicles registered within the UK and abroad. The estimated total of paid penalty charge notices is approximately £46.3m.

A14: Suffolk

Mr David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many road traffic (a) accidents and (b) fatalities there have been on the A14 in Suffolk involving drivers aged under 21 years in each year since 2005.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The number of reported road traffic a) accidents and b) fatalities there have been on the A14 in Suffolk involving drivers aged 21 years in each year since 2005 is shown in the attached table.  



A14 Suffolk
(Excel SpreadSheet, 10.06 KB)

Furniture

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many desks are in his Department's main building; how many such desks are (a) owned and (b) leased by his Department; and what the cost is per desk of leasing.

Claire Perry: There are 1,477 owned desks in the Department’s main headquarters building. The Department does not lease any desks.

Northern Rail

Mrs Linda Riordan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when the pacer trains on the Calder Valley line will be replaced.

Mrs Linda Riordan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what rolling stock is earmarked to replace pacer units on Northern Rail lines.

Claire Perry: The Government is clear that Pacer units will be replaced in the new Northern franchise. The details of how this will be implemented are being considered as part of the specification for the future franchise, which will be published early in the New Year. We expect that the rolling stock used for the Pacer replacement will be a matter for bidders for the future Northern franchise to address in their bids.

Maritime and Coastguard Agency: Belfast

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many times the Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre at Belfast was staffed at below risk-assessed levels in (a) October and (b) November 2014.

Mr John Hayes: Belfast Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) was staffed below risk assessed levels during: a) October 2014 – 22 occasions out of 62 shiftsb) November 2014 – 10 occasions out of 60 shifts Where there are specific issues at a MRCC Her Majesty’s Coastguard is using the current long established pairing arrangements between MRCCs. This enables each MRCC to be connected to at least one other MRCC which is available to provide mutual support.  These historic risk assessed watch level assessments at MRCCs err strongly on the side of caution. As each MRCC joins the evolving national network the number of Coastguards at any of the individual centres becomes less significant. The flexibility of the new arrangements gives a new significance to the number of Coastguards available on the growing network.

Maritime and Coastguard Agency: Stornoway

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many times the Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre at Stornoway was staffed at below risk-assessed levels in (a) October and (b) November 2014.

Mr John Hayes: Stornoway Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) was staffed below risk assessed levels during: a) October 2014 – 40 occasions out of 62 shiftsb) November 2014 – 40 occasions out of 60 shifts Where there are specific issues at a MRCC Her Majesty’s Coastguard is using the current long established pairing arrangements between MRCCs. This enables each MRCC to be connected to at least one other MRCC which is available to provide mutual support.  These historic risk assessed watch level assessments at MRCCs err strongly on the side of caution. As each MRCC joins the evolving national network the number of Coastguards at any of the individual centres becomes less significant. The flexibility of the new arrangements gives a new significance to the number of Coastguards available on the growing network.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to bring forward proposals to amend the law relating to the unauthorised use of unmanned drones in the airspace over the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Robert Goodwill: There are no current plans to amend the law relating to the use of small unmanned aircraft in the airspace over the UK. The Air Navigation Order 2009 prevents a person causing or permitting an aircraft to endanger the safety of a person or property, and prohibits the flying of these small unmanned aircraft over or within 150 meters of built up areas – including airports – unless approved by the Civil Aviation Authority. The Civil Aviation Authority is launching an awareness campaign “You have control. Be Safe! Be Legal!”

Roads: Kent

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much has been invested in road infrastructure in (a) Kent, (b) Medway and (c) Gillingham and Rainham constituency in each year since 2010.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Gillingham and Rainham constituency falls within Medway Council’s area of responsibility and therefore we do not allocate any funds separately for road infrastructure in that area. On the Strategic Road Network the investment in (a) Kent and (b) Medway for the financial years from 2010-11 to 2014-15 is provided in the table below. Highways Agency Funding 2010/112011/122012/132013/142014/15 (Year to Date) £m£m£m£m£mKent8.48.946.8111.458.8Medway1.80.11.11.20.4 For the local road network the Department for Transport has allocated the following funding to (a) Kent and (b) Medway for road infrastructure: Local Highways Funding 2010/11*2011/122012/132013/142014/15 £m£m£m£m£mKent93.973.132.736.354.8Medway5.34.63.94.15.3 The above table includes funding we have provided through the local Highways Maintenance Block, Integrated Transport Block, Severe Weather Funding, Local Major Projects and Local Pinch Point Fund schemes. The table does not include funding provided through the Bus Service Operators Grant, Local Sustainable Transport Fund, or Cycling Grant. Local authorities are also able to use revenue funding, allocated by the Department of Communities and Local Government through the Revenue Support Grant for maintaining their local highways. It is for local highway authorities to decide upon their spending priorities across the whole range of services that they provide.

Road Traffic: Shipley

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 8 December 2014 to Question 216679, on traffic counts, in which location in Shipley each such count took place.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The location of Department for Transport Traffic Counts which have taken place in the Shipley Constituency since 2010 are shown in the Tables below. 2010 DfT Traffic Counts in Shipley Constituency DfT Count Point NumberOrdnance Survey Grid ReferenceRoad Name7377406600,435000A629 near Denholme37845414700,437000A6038 (between Bradford Road and Valley Road)47452417990,445980Ilkley Road (A660)47968415000,436866Valley Road (A6037)56485415000,447200Coutances Way (A65)77055407400,432210B6145 (between Halifax Road and Brighouse Road)80858410580,439780Sir Fred Hoyle Way (A650)80859411660,438210Sir Fred Hoyle Way (A650)80860412820,437660Bingley Road (A650)948968412040,436683Cottingley Cliffe Road (B6269)948973407156,436205Cullingworth Road (B6144)949039415769,439046Netherhall Road  2011 DfT Traffic Counts in Shipley Constituency DfT Count Point NumberOrdnance Survey Grid ReferenceRoad Name7377406600,435000A629 near Denholme37487414000,437800Saltaire Road (A657)77056407400,432510Brighouse Road (A644)80859411660,438210Sir Fred Hoyle Way (A650)948968412040,436683Cottingley Cliffe Road (B6269)948970407645,437785Hill End Lane (B6249)948973407156,436205Cullingworth Road (B6144)949039415769,439046Netherhall Road  2012 DfT Traffic Counts in Shipley Constituency DfT Count Point NumberOrdnance Survey Grid ReferenceRoad Name7413414000,437600Bingley Road (A650)17371415000,437650Briggate (A657)27807417160,440000Hollins Hill (A6038)46637417140,445000A65 north of Menston56485415000,447200Coutances Way (A65)948968412040,436683Cottingley Cliffe Road (B6269)948970407645,437785Hill End Lane (B6249)948973407156,436205Cullingworth Road (B6144)949039415769,439046Netherhall Road 2013 DfT Traffic Counts in Shipley Constituency DfT Count Point NumberOrdnance Survey Grid ReferenceRoad Name7734414880,437400Otley Road (A6038)80859411660,438210Sir Fred Hoyle Way (A650)948968412040,436683Cottingley Cliffe Road (B6269)948970407645,437785Hill End Lane (B6249)948973407156,436205Cullingworth Road (B6144)949039415769,439046Netherhall Road  2014 DfT Traffic Counts in Shipley Constituency DfT Count Point NumberOrdnance Survey Grid ReferenceRoad Name948968412040,436683Cottingley Cliffe Road (B6269)948970407645,437785Hill End Lane (B6249)948973407156,436205Cullingworth Road (B6144)949039415769,439046Netherhall Road

Disabled Staff

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many people with a disability work in his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry: The department employs 16,373 people of whom 1,399 have declared themselves as disabled and 3458 whose status is unknown.

First Hull Trains

Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent meetings he has had with representatives of First Hull Trains on the extension of their track-access arrangements beyond December 2016.

Claire Perry: Open Access operators apply to the Office of Rail Regulation for the necessary access rights and to Network Rail for paths in the timetable.The Department for Transport has no say in this regulatory process. Therefore, there have been no recent meetings with representatives of First Hull Trains on the extension of their track-access arrangements beyond December 2016.

East Anglia Railway Line

Mr Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much investment has there been in the Chelmsford to London Liverpool Street rail line by (a) project and (b) type of investment in each of the last 10 financial years.

Claire Perry: The Department does not hold information about the Chelmsford to London Liverpool Street line in the format requested. Details of infrastructure enhancements on the line are included in Network Rail’s enhancement plan for Control Period 4 (2009-2014) (available at http://www.networkrail.co.uk/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=30064785772) For information about enhancements prior to 2009, information is available in the Network Route Plans for the Great Eastern Main Line on Network Rail’s website.

East Anglia Railway Line

Mr Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many times and when rail services on the Chelmsford to London Liverpool Street line have been disrupted as a result of overrunning engineering works carried out by Network Rail in the last 12 months.

Claire Perry: The Department does not hold the information in the form requested. This would be a matter for Network Rail.

Dartford-Thurrock Crossing

Mr Michael Thornton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the annual operational cost of the new Dartford-Thurrock River free flow toll system.

Mr John Hayes: The estimated cost of operating the new system in the calendar year 2015 is £24.5m. This includes costs paid to the service provider (Sanef), third party costs and the Highways Agency’s internal costs. The Department of Transport estimates the following revenue will be generated by the Dartford-Thurrock River Crossing in the financial years 2014/15 and 2015/16.  2014/152015/16Estimated Revenue£98.2m£111.2m

Dartford-Thurrock Crossing

Mr John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of the projected income from toll charges on the Dartford River Crossing in (a) 2014 and (b) 2015.

Mr John Hayes: The Department of Transport estimates the following revenue will be generated by the Dartford-Thurrock River Crossing in the financial years 2014/15 and 2015/16. 2014/152015/16Estimated Revenue£98.2m£111.2m

East Anglia Railway Line

Mr Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on proposed investment in the Chelmsford to London Liverpool Street rail line in each of the next 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry: Investment plans for the line between Chelmsford and London Liverpool Street for Control Period 5 (for the period 2014-2019) are included in Network Rail’s Strategic Business Plan (available at the following web address: http://www.networkrail.co.uk/browse%20documents/strategicbusinessplan/cp5/supporting%20documents/our%20activity%20and%20expenditure%20plans/overarching%20cp5%20enhancements%20plan.pdf?cd=2). For the five-year period beyond 2019, Network Rail published a draft Anglia Route Study on 5 November 2014: http://www.networkrail.co.uk/long-term-planning-process/anglia-route-study/

Roads: Capital Investment

Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to his Department's Road Investment Strategy, published on 1 December 2014, what years are covered by the first road period and next road period.

Mr John Hayes: A Road Period represents the duration of a Road Investment Strategy (RIS). The first Road Period covers the period 2015/16 to 2019/20. This RIS has set funding, on an indicative basis, out to 2020/21. It is anticipated that the second Road Period will run from 2020/21 to 2024/25.

Older Workers

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many people working in his Department are over 65 years old; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry: There are 16,373 people working in the department of whom 334 are aged 65 or over.

Motor Vehicles: Insurance

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the cost of establishing the My Licence service; and what estimate he has made of the annual administrative costs of that service.

Claire Perry: The My Licence service provides the insurance industry with validated driver data from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) to help them calculate motor insurance premiums. This service was developed alongside the DVLA’s award-winning View Driving Licence service, which allows individual drivers to access their own record, and the development costs are combined. These services were developed together on a new strategic enquiry platform built on the same infrastructure. This allows the DVLA to develop future enquiry services on the same platform. The end of year forecast for these services is £9.1m. This is a saving of £15m on the original forecast of £24.1m. The estimated annual cost for support and maintenance is £2m, excluding VAT.

A1: A421

Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the expected (a) start date and (b) end date is of the recently announced improvement to the Black Cat roundabout.

Mr John Hayes: The A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet scheme is likely to enter construction towards the end of the first Road Period.

A47: Norfolk

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what funding the Highways Agency has allocated for improvement works to be carried out at the Broad End Road junction; and what criteria the Agency used in determining the level of that funding.

Mr John Hayes: Funding for the improvements due to be carried out at the A47 Broadend Road Junction in early 2015 is approximately £123,200. The criteria used in determining the level of funding required to complete this scheme includes consideration of all the potential costs compared against the projected benefits achieved. For the Broadend Road Junction scheme this includes the costs of the design work, materials, construction – including the provision of 2 vehicle activated signs on the approaches to the staggered junction plus improvements to the road markings - traffic management and pre- and post-construction safety audits.

A47: Norfolk

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects the safety works at Broad End Road junction, scheduled for completion before Christmas 2014, to be completed.

Mr John Hayes: The safety works planned for the A47 at the Broadend Road Junction have been delayed due to further work being required on the scheme design. Work on the white lining and the erection of posts for the vehicle activated signs is now programmed to start in early January and, depending on the weather, to take approximately 3 weeks to complete. The vehicle activated signs will be installed in mid February.

London-Weymouth Railway Line

Richard Drax: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make it his policy to consider options for creating a new fast train service between London Waterloo and Weymouth.

Claire Perry: We will consider all options for improving journey times on the route to Weymouth within the infrastructure and operational constraints. The draft Wessex Route Study was published by Network Rail for consultation on 3 November 2014, setting out the strategic vision for the route over the next 30 years. The consultation is open until 17 February 2015 and responses will be published in due course. Responses to the consultation will feed in to the final version of the Wessex Route Study, which is due to be published next year. This will then help to inform the Government’s priorities for the next Rail Investment Strategy, for the period 2019-2024 (control period 6).

Northern Rail

Grahame M. Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Autumn Statement 2014, if he will make it a requirement of the new Northern Rail and Trans-Pennine rail franchises that Pacer trains must be replaced by different rolling stock; and by what date he plans for Pacer trains to be replaced by different rolling stock on those franchises.

Claire Perry: TransPennine Express does not operate Pacer trains and the Government is clear that Pacer units will be replaced in the new Northern franchise. The details of how this will be implemented are being considered as part of the specification for the future franchises, which will be published early in the New Year. We expect that the rolling stock used for the Pacer replacement will be a matter for bidders for the future Northern franchise to address in their bids.

Ministers' Private Offices

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many staff in ministerial offices in his Department were appointed from (a) the Civil Service and (b) external bodies (i) between May 2005 and May 2010 and (ii) since May 2010.

Claire Perry: This information is not held centrally and can only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Cycling: Coventry

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will discuss with Coventry City Council steps to make Coventry more accessible to cyclists.

Mr Robert Goodwill: As proposed in the draft Cycling Delivery Plan, published on 16 October 2014, we are looking to forge partnerships with local authorities. In exchange for signing up to a series of actions to deliver ambitious changes in cycling and walking - they will receive access to supporting tools and incentives, including priority access to funding, knowledge sharing, and sector expertise. If they have not already done so, I would encourage Coventry City Council to consider a partnership.

Cycling: Urban Areas

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to make cities more accessible to cyclists.

Mr Robert Goodwill: In line with the Government’s localism agenda local authorities are responsible for their highways and for identifying and implementing sustainable transport options. Through the Cycling Ambition grants eight cities across England have shared £77 million of funding, and in these cities spend on cycling is now over £10 per person. In addition, in November, a further £114 million for the Cycling Ambition cities was announced. Furthermore, as proposed in the draft Cycling Delivery Plan, published on 16 October 2014, we are looking to forge partnerships with local authorities across England. In exchange for signing up to a series of actions to deliver ambitious changes in cycling and walking - they will receive access to supporting tools and incentives, including priority access to funding, knowledge sharing, and sector expertise.

East Anglia Railway Line

Mr Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish punctuality figures for the Greater Anglia service between Chelmsford and London Liverpool Street for each of the last three years.

Mr Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish punctuality figures for the Greater Anglia service between Chelmsford and London Liverpool Street for each of the last six months.

Claire Perry: The Department does not hold punctuality figures at the level of detail requested. This is an operational matter for Network Rail.

British Transport Police

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to change the application criteria to be a special constable within the British Transport Police.

Claire Perry: The selection of Special Constables to join the British Transport Police is an operational issue controlled by the Chief Constable. We understand that the Chief Constable is currently reviewing the list of occupations currently prohibited from being a Special Constable in the light of the new College of Policing Code of Ethics.

British Transport Police

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in the Scottish Government on the implications for the future of British Transport Police of the recommendations of the Smith Commission.

Claire Perry: There have been no discussions between the Secretary of State and his counterpart in the Scottish Government about the implications for the future of the British Transport Police of the recommendations of the Smith Commission. Officials across the UK Government departments will be working with the Scottish Government to understand their views on the Smith Agreement.

Railways: East Riding

Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential effect the commitment to tender new trains on the TransPennine and Northern Rail franchises might have on (a) journey times and (b) number of services at (i) Cottingham, (ii) Ferriby, (iii) Brough, (iv) Wressle, (v) Broomfleet, (vi) Gilberdyke, (vii) Saltmarshe, (viii) Eastrington and (ix) Howden railway stations.

Claire Perry: The impacts on journey times, capacity and train service of new and modern trains on the Northern and TransPennine Express franchises are being considered as part of the development of the specifications for those franchises. The outcome of this work will be reflected in the Invitations to Tender for both franchises, which we expect to publish in the New Year. We expect that the rolling stock to be used and where it is deployed will be a matter for bidders for both franchises to address in their bids.

Transport: Weather

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what financial provision he has made for possible travel disruption caused by winter weather.

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what contingency measures he has in place for the effects on roads and railways of snowfall during winter.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Department for Transport has undertaken a great deal of work with the transport sector to prepare for this winter season and all key transport operators, including local authorities, train operating companies, the Highways Agency, Network Rail and airports, have contingency plans in place to deal with any winter weather that may be encountered. The Department continues to liaise with salt producers and as in previous years started to monitor salt stock holdings being held across the country. Analysis from a recent stock survey highlights the Highways Agency (HA) and local highway authorities are holding over one million tonnes of road salt. The Government has also retained an emergency salt stockpile of around 400,000 tonnes for this winter season. In addition both the Highways Agency and local highways authorities have winter service vehicles for use on the road network, including 500 vehicles for dealing with any incidents that may occur on the strategic road network. It must, however, be recognised that severe winter weather may cause some disruption to the transport network. If travel is disrupted then we expect operators and highway authorities to do everything they can to keep passengers and road users informed whilst ensuring that the networks resume services as quickly as possible. In respect of what financial provision has been made for possible travel disruption, the Department for Transport monitors its financial position regularly, including considering any risks such as poor weather that could affect its forecast of expenditure, and manages these within the context of its overall budget.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) male and (b) female.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Management Board consists of 9 executive and 2 non-executive members. The gender breakdown is a) 5 male and 4 female executive board members and b)1 male and 1 female non-executive board members. Due to the small number of Board members, ethnicity information is classed as “sensitive personal data” under section 2(e) of the Data Protection Act 1998.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many members of his Department's executive board are disabled.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Due to the small number of FCO Management Board members, we are unable to release disability information as this is classed as “sensitive personal data” under section 2(e) of the Data Protection Act 1998.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department are paid less than the Living Wage.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) women and (ii) men.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: No member of staff directly employed by the Foreign and Commonwealth office in the UK or on a diplomatic posting overseas is paid less than the Living Wage. Staff employed locally at our missions overseas are done so in full compliance with local employment law. We are aware that there are currently 96 contracted staff who are working for the FCO Facilities Management (FM) provider whose hourly rate is less than the levels recommended by the Living Wage campaign. We do not hold any information on the proportion of staff this represents for our FM provider nor do we hold any information on the ethnic or gender background of those contracted staff. We do not hold information on the earnings of any other contracted staff.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic background.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Management Board consists of 9 executive and 2 non-executive members. The gender breakdown is a) 5 male and 4 female executive board members and b)1 male and 1 female non-executive board members. Due to the small number of Board members, ethnicity information is classed as “sensitive personal data” under section 2(e) of the Data Protection Act 1998.

British Overseas Territories

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 5 December 2014 to Question 216865, what estimate he has made of the cost of obtaining the information requested; and on what basis that estimate was arrived at.

Mr David Lidington: The guide to Parliamentary work (available on the Cabinet Office website at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guide-to-parliamentary-work and already in the Library of the House) sets out that Government departments can refuse to answer a question where the cost of responding to that question would be above the disproportionate cost threshold, which is currently set at £850. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office calculated that collating a response to the hon. Member’s question would exceed this threshold.

Taiwan

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to improve relations with the Taipei Representative Office in the UK; and what discussions his Department has had with the Taipei Representative Office on improving (a) visa treatments and exemptions for people travelling from Taiwan to the UK and (b) dialogue between the Taipei Representative Office and relevant departments in the UK Government.

Mr Hugo Swire: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office to supports UK-Taiwan cooperation on education, culture, industry and trade. The UK lifted its visitor visa requirement for Taiwan passport holders in 2009 which has made travel easier for Taiwanese tourists. The Taipei Representative Office is welcome to engage with relevant UK Government Departments to further Taiwan’s educational, cultural and economic links with the UK.

Tanzania

Mr David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations (a) to the government of Tanzania and (b) in international fora about the proposed eviction of the Masai to provide a hunting reserve.

James Duddridge: We were aware of media reports last month about plans by the Government of Tanzania in relation to land occupied by Masai pastoralists. Since then, on November 23, Tanzanian President Kikwete confirmed that “there has never been, nor will there ever be, any plan by the government of Tanzania to evict the Masai people from their ancestral land”.

Taiwan

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the UK's relationship with Taiwan; and what plans he has to strengthen ties between the UK and Taiwan.

Mr Hugo Swire: The UK enjoys a strong and flourishing relationship with Taiwan, in the fields of trade, investment, education and culture. We consistently seek ways to develop this relationship further. Recent examples include: a visit to Taiwan in September by Dame Julia King, the UK’s Low Carbon Business Ambassador; the “GREAT Taste of Britain” campaign to promote British culture and food in Taiwan in October; and a visit by delegation of UK companies in November with the objective of sharing the UK’s experience on renewable energy.

Taiwan

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the role of the Taipei Representative Office in the UK in promoting closer links between the UK and Taiwan.

Mr Hugo Swire: The Taipei Representative Office plays an important role in promoting trade, investment, education and culture links with Taiwan. It regularly engages with UK business, industry and educational institutes. For example the Representative of the Taipei Representative Office led a business delegation to Bath in November in order to build upon commercial links.

Furniture

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many desks are in his Department's main building; how many such desks are (a) owned and (b) leased by his Department; and what the cost is per desk of leasing.

Mr David Lidington: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s (FCO) main building at King Charles Street is currently being refurbished in preparation for the FCO’s move out of the Old Admiralty Building. The project is due for completion in 2015 by which time the building will hold 2096 desks, none of which will be leased.

Iraq

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he last raised the inclusion and representation of Assyrians in the (a) Iraqi army and (b) Kurdish peshmerga with the (i) Iraqi government and (ii) Kurdistan regional government.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We have not raised this issue with the current Government of Iraq (GoI) or Kurdistan Regional Government. We welcome the commitment that Prime Minister Abadi has made to inclusive government and to protecting the rights of all Iraqi citizens. The recent agreement reached between the GoI and Kurdistan Regional Government on revenue-sharing, and the agreement reached between the GoI and three of the tribes of Anbar province to cooperate in the fight against ISIL, are evidence of the more inclusive approach Prime Minister Abadi is taking. Likewise, the steps that have been taken to reform the Iraqi Security Forces, including the dismissal of commanders for corruption, and the creation of a National Guard which would bring militia groups under government control, are hopeful signs for the future.

Older Workers

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many people working in his Department are over 65 years old; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has 40 UK Based staff over 65 years old in its employment. These comprise of 18 permanent staff, 20 Fee Paid staff and 2 Fixed Term Contract staff.

Iraq

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent reports he has received on the effect of the appointment of Haider al-Abadi as Prime Minister of Iraq on (a) the relationship between the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Iraqi government and (b) the capacity of those governments to lead efforts to combat ISIL.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We welcome Prime Minister Abadi’s commitment to inclusive politics and national reconciliation. Under his tenure relations between the Government of Iraq (GoI) and Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) have improved significantly, with a landmark deal on oil revenues and budget payments agreed on 2 December. This deal commits the GoI to providing funding to the KRG for the Kurdish Security Forces and will hopefully lay the foundations for increased cooperation between the GoI and KRG in the fight against ISIL. Prime Minister Abadi has also taken steps to reform and improve the effectiveness of the Iraqi Security Forces, including the dismissal of commanders for corruption, and to create a National Guard force which would bring militia groups under government control.

Disabled Staff

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many people with a disability work in his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) takes seriously its obligations to collect diversity data as required by the Equality Act 2010. Information about the diversity and makeup of our staff is listed in the FCO's Diversity and Equality Report. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/diversity-and-equality-report-2014All staff have been asked to provide personal disability data to be held anonymously. We continue to encourage increased declaration by staff as current declaration rates are below the level necessary to give meaningful statistical information.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he plans to answer Question 205687, tabled on 14 July 2014.

Mr David Lidington: I responded to the right hon. Member's Question (PQ 205687) on 21 July 2014.

Iraq

Dr Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate he has made of the number of Yazidis still trapped on Mount Sinai in Iraq; and what steps the Government is taking to support those people.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Government is in close contact with partner agencies, including the UN, on the humanitarian situation in Iraq. We have not received any information or requests that would suggest that humanitarian assistance is required on Mount Sinjar but we continue to monitor the situation closely. The Government is providing £39.5 million of humanitarian assistance in response to the crisis in Iraq. All UK aid is distributed on the basis of need to ensure that civilians are not discriminated against on the grounds of race, religion or ethnicity.

Private Military and Security Companies

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many contracts his Department has held with private security companies in each year since 2008; what the cost of those contracts was; and if he will make a statement.

Mr David Lidington: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) continues to have a number of centrally awarded security contracts with private security companies (PSCs), covering our key conflict zone requirements including Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Somalia and Yemen.These contracts are widely used by other Government Departments and continue to be retendered every 3-5 years. The current contracts are:Afghanistan – guardingIraq (Baghdad) – guardingIraq (Erbil) – guardingLibya – guardingSomalia – guardingYemen – guardingVarious conflict zones – Overseas Security Managers and AnalystsExpenditure against these contracts is as detailed below:2008/2009 £52.5 million2009/2010 £49.5 million2010/2011 £41.6 million2011/2012 £50.4 million2012/2013 £48.9 million2013/2014 £45.4 millionThese details are limited to these contracts and do not include local contracts let by our overseas Posts. Data for these could only be collected at disproportionate cost.

Middle East

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help LGBT people under threat from ISIS in Northern Iraq and Syria.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: ISIL continues to brutally and indiscriminately murder and persecute people in both Iraq and Syria. They are terrorising people from many minority groups in areas under their control including Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender people. The Government strongly condemns any and all abuses or violations of human rights. We are supporting the Government of Iraq as they work to deliver a unified response against ISIL. The UK fully supports the Iraqi government in its efforts to uphold the rule of law and bring those responsible for all violations and abuses of human rights to justice. The Government, through UK Aid, is providing humanitarian relief of more than £700 million to help alleviate the suffering of displaced people in Iraq and Syria.

Bahrain

Mr Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he last met Prince Nasser bin Hamad; and what areas of bilateral cooperation were discussed at that meeting.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: I have not previously met Sheikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa of Bahrain and I do not currently have any meetings with him planned.

Bahrain

Mr Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans there are for visits to the UK by representatives of the Bahrain government.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: On 4 December, a delegation of representatives from the Government of Bahrain visited the UK for the UK-Bahrain Joint Working Group. At present, the Foreign & Commonwealth Office do not have any other inward visits planned with representatives of the Bahraini Government.

Bahrain

Mr Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans there are for Ministers to visit Bahrain.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) and the Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon Friend the Member for Sevenoaks (Mr Fallon) visited Bahrain on 5-6 December. I do not currently have any plans to visit Bahrain.

Bahrain

Mr Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the conduct of the general election in Bahrain in November.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: I welcome the elections held in Bahrain in November. Whilst it is disappointing there was a boycott by the opposition, I commend the election of a broad range of candidates and the election of a number of women. It is important that the Bahraini parliament fulfils its constitutional role and represents all the communities across Bahrain.

Gambia

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Commonwealth Secretary-General about Gambia's return to the Commonwealth; and if he will make a statement.

Mr David Lidington: The UK has had no discussions with the Commonwealth Secretary-General, Kamalesh Sharma, about The Gambia’s return to the Commonwealth. The decision to withdraw from the Commonwealth was an executive decision taken solely by Gambian President Jammeh. Although the Commonwealth Secretary-General has publicly stated that The Gambia’s return would be welcomed, President Jammeh has made it clear that he will not reverse his decision. If The Gambia did decide to return to the Commonwealth, it would need to make a formal application to the Secretary-General.

Department for International Development

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many members of her Department's executive board are disabled.

Mr Desmond Swayne: This information cannot be provided as numbers are too low to disclose for data protection reasons.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many members of her Department's executive board are (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic background.

Mr Desmond Swayne: This information cannot be provided as numbers are too low to disclose for data protection reasons.

Yemen

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what direct support her Department has provided for the drafting of a new constitution in Yemen.

Mr Desmond Swayne: DFID has provided £1 million to support Yemen’s constitutional drafting process, through a multi-donor United Nations Trust Fund under the leadership of Jamal Benomar, the Special Adviser to the UN Secretary General. This builds on our earlier contribution of £3.7 million to Yemen’s National Dialogue Conference. Our support has helped to give women, youth and other marginalised groups an unprecedented opportunity to influence the negotiation of a more inclusive political settlement, as the basis for a more secure and stable Yemen.

Yemen

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what direct support her Department is providing to the government of Yemen on making economic reform plans.

Mr Desmond Swayne: DFID is providing advice to the Government of Yemen on how to address binding constraints to growth and develop a prioritised economic reform plan, working with the World Bank. In addition we are also providing £3.15 million, through a World Bank Trust Fund, to help the Government of Yemen to implement economic policy reforms prioritised in Yemen’s 2012 Mutual Accountability Framework, and to coordinate international assistance to support these reforms. Finally, we are working closely with the IMF on its recently agreed Extended Credit Facility programme for Yemen, which includes a number of economic reform benchmarks.

Elections

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what direct support her Department is providing to the government of Yemen on the formation and implementation of elections policy.

Mr Desmond Swayne: DFID is providing £7 million to support Yemen’s constitutional referendum and elections, in partnership with Yemen’s Supreme Commission for Elections and Referendum, the United Nations Development Programme, and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems. No DFID funding is being provided directly to Government of Yemen. Our support will help to: develop a new biometric voter registry; equip polling stations; draft relevant legislation; deliver a public outreach and communications campaign; engage civil society, women, and political parties in the process and planning of the elections; and assess and manage security risks. In addition, the UK Ambassador to Yemen regularly discusses elections preparations with Government of Yemen.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many and what proportion of (a) her Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by her Department are paid less than the Living Wage.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many and what proportion of (a) her Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by her Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many and what proportion of (a) her Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by her Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) women and (ii) men.

Mr Desmond Swayne: There are no staff directly employed by DFID who are paid less than the current Living Wage as defined by the Living Wage Foundation. DFID considers the rate of pay for outsourced workers to be an issue for contractors. We encourage outsource partners to pay the Living Wage as defined by the Living Wage Foundation.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many members of her Department's executive board are (a) male and (b) female.

Mr Desmond Swayne: DFID’s Executive Management Committee consists of four male members and one female member.

Furniture

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many desks are in her Department's main building; how many such desks are (a) owned and (b) leased by her Department; and what the cost is per desk of leasing.

Mr Desmond Swayne: There are 650 desks in our main building at 22 Whitehall, London. We also have 834 desks in our office in Abercrombie House, East Kilbride. All desks are owned by the Department for International Development.

Developing Countries: Accountancy

Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many teams of staff from UK accountancy institutions have been deployed to developing countries under the Investment Facility for Utilising Specialist Expertise funded by her Department since April 2014; and if she will make a statement.

Justine Greening: 2 UK accountancy institutes have completed deployments in Zambia and Ethiopia since April 2014. A further 3 deployments are scheduled to take place in the first quarter of next year, with future deployments thereafter.

Overseas Aid

Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much of her Department's Official Development Assistance contribution in 2013 was a result of funding being used or allocated from future years' budgets.

Justine Greening: The Department for International Development did not utilise any future year budget to deliver its contribution to Officials Development Assistance in 2013.

Arab States

Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to her Department's news release of 25 June 2013, what progress has been made by the task force of legal experts working to identify legal, regulatory and social barriers that limit opportunities for women in business in the Arab world.

Mr Desmond Swayne: This work was taken forward under the auspices of the MENA-OECD project “Supporting women as economic actors during the transition period”, which analyses to what extent legal provisions influence women’s economic participation. The project is expected to complete in May 2015, providing concrete recommendations to improve legal frameworks.

India

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the extent of the misuse of UK aid to India; and what steps her Department takes to ensure that UK aid is not misused.

Mr Desmond Swayne: No new financial aid programmes have been approved in India since 2012. DFID takes seriously tackling the misuse or misappropriation of UK Aid, and has a range of robust controls and measures in place to safeguard the UK taxpayers’ money. In DFID India this includes conducting regular and rigorous fiduciary risk assessments to determine the way in which UK Aid is provided. We have put in place strong programme monitoring systems, including fraud trackers for all key projects. We conduct Fiduciary Risk Assessments (FRA) on programmes where direct financial assistance is provided to the government. All partners are subject to pre-funding due diligence checks and regular scrutiny during programme implementation.

Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation

Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps the UK is taking to encourage other donors to help GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance reach its replenishment target of $7.5 billion.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The UK is a strong supporter of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. The International Development Secretary recently confirmed the UK commitment of up to £1 billion to Gavi for 2016 to 2020, two months ahead of the pledging conference, to encourage other donors to step up and support Gavi to save over 5 million lives. I am, along with Ministerial colleagues, actively approaching Ministers in other governments to encourage them to commit further funding to ensure the full $7.5 billion is achieved.

Procurement

Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will place in the Library a copy of her Department's standard terms of contract with suppliers.

Justine Greening: The standard terms of contract for DFID are available at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-international-development/about/procurement .

Afghanistan

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, which Afghan civil society organisations attended the London Conference on Afghanistan and associated events.

Justine Greening: Over 50 Afghan civil society representatives were elected to attend the London Conference on Afghanistan through a process led by the UN-supported Civil Society-Joint Working Group (CS-JWG) in Kabul. The full list of organisations represented is below.   Transparent Election Foundation of Afghanistan (TEFA) Eastern Region Civil Society Organizations Council (ERCSOC) Afghan Women Educational Center (AWEC) Afghanistan in Social Society Waqt-e-Far Cultural and Social Organization (WFCSO) Youth Unity Educational Cultural and Social Association (YUECSA) Uruzgan Youth and Culture Society Reshad Organisations Eshanch Associaton Peace Window for Women’s Rehabilitation Organization of Afghanistan (PWWROA) Green Wish for Afghanistan Educational & Service Organization Afghan Women News Agency Feminine Solidarity for Justice Org (FSJO) Open Asia Civil Society and Human Rights Network (CSHRN) Afghan Civil Society Forum-organization 7 TV / Organization of Afghan Alumni Human Rights Focus Organisation (HRFO) Cooperation Center for Afghanistan (CCA) Youth Coordination Center (YCC) Afghanistan Youth National Development & Social Organisation (AYNDSO) Khost Women Cultural and Social Society Awoshtoon Cultural Society Paktya Sabawoon Radio & Television Viyar Naway Sahar Mediothek Cooperation Organization for Disabled and Poor People of Afghanistan (CODPPA) Naji Development Welfare Organization (NDWO) Afghan Health and Development Services (AHDS) Sanayee Development Organization (SDO) Skills Training and Rehabilitation Society (STARS) WADAN Rural Rehabilitation Association for Afghanistan (RRAA) Da Qanoon Ghushtonky Development and Ability Organisation Public Awareness Time Hour (PATH_O) Afghan Women's Network Marefat Civil Capacity Building Organization (MCCBO) Afghan Women Skills Development Center Nai Supporting Open Media in Afghanistan Women & Society- general director Ertebat Organization Empowerment Centre for Women (ECW) Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan (FEFA) Afghan Community Rehabilitation Unit (ACRU) Mediothek Afghanistan ATRC / CSCC (Civil Society Coordination Center) Afghan Public Welfare Organization (APWO) OHRA (Organisation for Harm Reduction in Afghanistan)

Burma

Mr David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what funding her Department is providing for internally displaced persons in Kachin State.

Mr David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the humanitarian implications of the recent armed conflict in the Kachin State of Burma.

Mr Desmond Swayne: Some 100,000 people have been living in camps for displaced people for over three years since the fighting restarted between the Kachin Independence Army and Government forces. Clashes and shelling in Kachin and Northern Shan have stepped up since early November. We are monitoring the situation carefully and have been in frequent contact with the UN and local organisations about the humanitarian implications of recent fighting. While there has been no significant new displacement or humanitarian needs in the last few months we will continue to monitor these issues closely. Between 2012 and 2015 DFID has allocated over £17 million for humanitarian assistance for internally displaced persons (IDP) in Kachin and Northern Shan States in Burma affected by the violence. This aid is providing food security, sanitation and health in line with accepted humanitarian standards as well as to strengthening IDP communities’ capacity to manage health hazards and risks.

West Africa: Ebola

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many UK (a) military and (b) civilian personnel are currently in West Africa assisting with the Ebola epidemic; and what steps have been taken to ensure that those people are given the maximum possible protection against that virus.

Justine Greening: Over 800 Ministry of Defence personnel have been deployed to Western Africa. As of 12 December there are 58 NHS volunteers in Sierra Leone and over 125 UK civilian Government personnel based in Sierra Leone. The safety of all UK staff is paramount and to that end, all medical staff deploying to Sierra Leone receive specialist pre-deployment training as well as further training and mentoring in-country to ensure safety procedures are followed at all times.

Overseas Aid

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much her Department's Debt Relief budget is for the (a) current and (b) next financial year.

Justine Greening: The Government is committed to providing debt relief through the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) and the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI) and consider non-HIPC debt relief on a case by case basis. Our budget for the current financial year is £90 million and for the next financial year £95 million.

Overseas Aid

Mr Dominic Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what funding her Department has provided for (a) disaster relief, (b) schemes which provide clean water and (c) vaccinations and inoculation against preventable diseases in each of the last five years; and how such funding is expressed as a proportion of her Department's total budget.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The Department for International Development (DFID) reports its total spend and spend by sector in the annual report that is published in June every year. This report is available online from our website: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dfid-annual-report-and-accounts-2013-to-2014.   DFID’s expenditure on disaster relief is reported under humanitarian assistance. DFID reports expenditure on clean water under water supply and sanitation as the majority of our programmes address these together, recognising that both are important for improving public health.

Sierra Leone

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of water and sanitation at the Kerry Town hospital in Sierra Leone.

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Prime Minister's contribution of 26 November 2014, Official Report, column 901, what the issue referred to as hindering the operation of the Kerry Town hospital in Sierra Leone is.

Justine Greening: The Kerry Town facility is operational and scaling-up according to schedule.

Overseas Aid

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, which companies received allocations of what value from her Department's 2013-14 evaluation budget.

Justine Greening: DFID gave £7.6m to companies in 2013-14 to evaluate our programmes. The largest 5 suppliers were:   Supplier NameTotal Spend 2013/14KPMG LLP£2.6mOXFORD POLICY MANAGEMENT£1.6mIOD PARC£0.5mUPPER QUARTILE£0.5mWYG International£0.4m   This represents a small proportion of DFID’s total spend on evaluation.

Developing Countries: Water

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps she is taking to improve access to clean water worldwide; and if she will make a statement.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The UK Government has promised to support 60 million people to gain access to sustainable water, sanitation and hygiene services in the developing world and mainly in Africa and South Asia. We are on track to achieve this target through projects managed by our Countries Offices in 15 countries, a new partnership with Unicef to deliver programmes in 9 countries and a challenge programme which funds 3 consortia working in 12 countries. In addition, we are active members on the Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) initiative that is building political will and new financing commitments from developing countries and donors.

Ebola

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, for how long each group of NHS healthcare staff being deployed to Ebola affected regions will be deployed.

Justine Greening: Each group of NHS healthcare staff travelling to West Africa will be deployed in Sierra Leone for four to five weeks.

Private Military and Security Companies

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many contracts her Department has held with private security companies in each year since 2008; what the cost of those contracts was; and if she will make a statement.

Mr Desmond Swayne: DFID has held a total of 8 centrally let contracts with private security companies since 2008 and the total cost of those contracts is £6.2M. The table below provides details by year concerning the number of contracts and the cost of those contracts. It should be noted that some of these contracts were active over multiple years:YearNumber of ContractsCost of Contract (GBP)2008313,589200951,008,75320102816,56620112725,825201211,147,414201311,680,18720141854,352

Charities

Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 5 December 2014 to Question 216932, how many (a) Direct Roadshows and (b) other events have been organised by her Department since 2010; and where those events have taken place.

Mr Desmond Swayne: Three DFID Direct Roadshows have been organised by the department. These events have taken place in Cardiff, Bristol and Manchester.

Syria

Mr Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what comparative estimate she has made of the average cost of (a) resettling a refugee from Syria in the UK and (b) providing financial support to a refugee from Syria in a country neighbouring that country.

Mr Desmond Swayne: Given the vulnerabilities of those brought to the UK under the Vulnerable Persons Relocation scheme, and the fact that no one yet has received a full 12 months of support, it is not possible at this stage to identify the average cost of refugee resettlement. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that the cost of resettling a refugee in the UK is far greater than that of supporting a refugee in the region. We can therefore help far more people in need through our support to partners delivering assistance in neighbouring countries.

Charities

Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 5 December 2014 to Question 216932, how many officials of each grade were involved in delivering her Department's Direct Roadshows; and how many Ministers and officials were in attendance at each such event.

Mr Desmond Swayne: Each of the Roadshow events included a key note speech from the Secretary of State and/or DFID Director General and a presentation by a DFID official. In response to your question, please see the table below:   EventOfficialsMinistersCardiff4 (2 B grade and 2 A grade members of staff)1 - Secretary of StateBristol6 (2 B grade, 2 A grade, 1 Senior Civil Servant and 1 Director General)0Manchester5 (2 B grade, 1 A grade, 1 Senior Civil Servant and 1 Director General)0

Department for Education

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of (a) her Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by her Department are paid less than the Living Wage.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of (a) her Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by her Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) women and (ii) men.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of (a) her Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by her Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

Mr Nick Gibb: All staff employed by the Department for Education are paid above the Living Wage, as defined by the Living Wage Foundation. The Department’s facilities management providers employ 133 staff paid below the Living Wage (as at 30 November 2014). Of these, 72 (54%) are women and 61 (46%) are men. 48 (36%) are white British, 20 (15%) are non-white British and 65 (49%) declined to state their ethnicity.

Education: Standards

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department has taken to increase the attainment of children and young people who identify as (a) Gypsy, Roma or Travellers and (b) being from other ethnic minority backgrounds.

Mr David Laws: The Department for Education’s reforms, including those aimed at improving teaching; encouraging good attendance and behaviour; and strengthening the curriculum and examination system, are designed to increase opportunity and support higher standards for all pupils, regardless of their ethnic background. These reforms are underpinned by new school accountability measures, which will encourage schools to focus more closely on the attainment of all their pupils. The pupil premium is providing schools with an additional £2.5 billion this year to support their disadvantaged pupils, including those from Gypsy, Roma and Traveller (GRT), and other minority ethnic groups.   The Department funded two local authorities to trial a virtual headteacher for GRT pupils, with responsibility for supporting schools to promote better pupil outcomes. The effective practice identified has been disseminated to every local authority.   In addition, the Department hosts a GRT education stakeholder group, chaired by Baroness Whitaker, which seeks to promote higher educational attainment for this group of pupils.

Pupil Exclusions

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department has taken to reduce the exclusion rate of children and young people who identify as (a) Gypsy, Roma or Travellers and (b) being from other ethnic minority backgrounds.

Mr David Laws: It is for headteachers to decide whether a pupil’s behaviour is such that it warrants exclusion from school. Reforms undertaken have focused on supporting schools to drive up standards, improve attendance and tackle poor behaviour.   The Department for Education has issued statutory guidance that sets out schools’ responsibilities in relation to exclusion decisions. The guidance reinforces that schools must take into account their duties under the Equality Act 2010 when excluding pupils, so as not to discriminate against them because of their ethnicity. It also highlights specifically those ethnic groups with disproportionately high exclusion rates and notes that headteachers should consider what extra support might be needed to reduce their risk of exclusion.   The Department is addressing the underlying causes of exclusion through its reforms to improve the quality of education that all pupils receive and to increase support for children with additional needs. This includes strengthening schools’ powers to tackle poor attendance and behaviour; addressing economic disadvantage through the pupil premium; overhauling the special educational needs system; and supporting improvements in the quality of alternative provision.

Teachers

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of those teaching in state-funded schools at the latest date for which such figures are available were identified as (a) white British and (b) any other ethnic group.

Mr David Laws: In November 2013 there were 420,000 teachers working in state-funded schools that were White-British (88% of all teachers where their ethnicity was known) and a further 57,000 (12%) teachers from all other ethnic groups. Ethnicity data is known for 95% of all teachers.   The information requested is also published in table 5 in the statistical first release ‘School Workforce in England, November 2013’ and is published online at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-workforce-in-england-november-2013

Pre-school Education

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department has taken to increase representation of ethnic minorities in the early years workforce.

Mr Sam Gyimah: Early years training providers and employers are responsible for ensuring that they do not discriminate when recruiting trainees and employees into the early years workforce and must comply with the requirements of the Equality Act 2010.

Non-teaching Staff

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of those in support roles in state-funded schools at the latest date for which such figures are available were identified as (a) white British and (b) any other ethnic group.

Mr David Laws: In November 2013 there were 658,000 support staff (which includes teaching assistants and all non-classroom based school staff) working in state-funded schools that were White-British (87% of support staff where their ethnicity is known) and a further 95,000 (13%) support staff from all other ethnic groups. Ethnicity data is known for 95% of all staff in support roles.   The information requested is also published in table 6 in the statistical first release ‘School Workforce in England, November 2013’ and is published online at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-workforce-in-england-november-2013

Schools: Staff

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department has taken to increase representation of ethnic minorities in the schools workforce.

Mr David Laws: The most recent School Workforce census shows that 7% of the teaching workforce are from black or minority ethnic (BME) backgrounds. By comparison, 12% of initial teacher trainees who have started programmes in 2014/15 have declared themselves to be from a BME background.   This positive picture reflects the range of opportunities and benefits now available to talented people to enter teaching by a diverse range of routes, including bursaries and scholarships; personalised support; and a salary-based training option.   In addition, the Department for Education sponsors the ‘Teach First’ programme, aimed at raising standards in the most challenging schools and areas of the country. 15% of Teach First’s 2014/15 trainees are from a BME background. The Department recently announced that it would be expanding Teach First from next year to 2,000 places across the country.

Schools: Leadership

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of those in leadership positions in state-funded schools at the latest date for which such figures are available were identified as (a) white British and (b) any other ethnic group.

Mr David Laws: In November 2013 there were 57,000 leadership teachers working in state-funded schools that were White-British (92% of all leadership teachers where their ethnicity was known) and a further 5,000 (8%) leadership teachers from all other ethnic groups. Ethnicity data is known for 97% of all leadership teachers.   The information requested is also published in table 5 in the statistical first release ‘School Workforce in England, November 2013’ and is published online at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-workforce-in-england-november-2013

Furniture

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many desks are in her Department's main building; how many such desks are (a) owned and (b) leased by her Department; and what the cost is per desk of leasing.

Mr Nick Gibb: The Department for Education has 1,493 desks in its main building, Sanctuary Buildings. The desks are owned by the Department.   The Department has significantly reduced the number of desks it uses in Sanctuary Buildings and across its wider estate, through sub-letting desk space to others and by employing a 7:10 desk ratio (7 desks for every 10 members of staff).

Children in Care

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the reasons for changes in the looked after children rate in (a) Newcastle upon Tyne and (b) the UK since 2009-10.

Mr Edward Timpson: The numbers of children looked-after and the rate per 10,000 children under 18 years in Newcastle upon Tyne and England are as follows: Children looked after at 31 March1,2,3 Years ending 31 March 2010 to 2014  Numbers  Rates per 10,000 children aged under 18 years  2010 2011 2012 2013 2014  2010 2011 2012 2013 2014Newcastle Upon Tyne 525 530 550 550 555  98 99 101 100 102 England 64,470 65,500 67,070 68,060 68,840  57 58 59 60 60Source: SSDA9031. Figures exclude children looked after under an agreed series of short term placements.2. England and Regional totals have been rounded to the nearest 10. Local authority figures have been rounded to the nearest 5.3. The rates per 10,000 children under 18 years have been derived using the mid-year population estimates provided by the Office for National Statistics.   The rate of referrals to children’s services has also increased over that time.  Rate per 10,000 children aged under 18 years, England  2009-102010-112011-122012-132013-14 Referrals1 to children's social care services 537.5 545.3 533.5 520.7 573.0 Initial assessments2 completed 352.0389.9398.1387.4.. 3Source: Children in need census 1. If a child has more than one referral in the year then each referral will be counted.2. An initial assessment is defined as a brief assessment of each child referred to children's social care with a request for services to be provided. If a child was the subject of more than one initial assessment during the reporting year, each assessment should be coded separately.3. Rates have not been calculated for 2013-14 as many local authorities have completed initial assessments for only part of the year and have moved to completing continuous assessments. It is for local authorities and the courts to determine when a child is to become looked-after. The looked-after population is the largest it has been for some time. This can be explained in part by demographic changes (the population of under 18s has steadily increased over recent years). However, there has also been a rise in the proportion of children who are looked-after over recent years, and the rate of referrals is also considerably higher now than it was in 2010. The impact of recent high profile cases is one possible explanation and local authorities are clearly taking firm and timely action where they assess that there is a risk of significant harm to children. In addition, the Department for Education issued revised statutory guidance on ‘Working Together to Safeguard Children’ in 2013, which reinforced the need for professionals to make referrals whenever it is considered that a child may be in need (as defined in the Children Act 1989), or where the child has suffered significant harm or is likely to do so.[1] The safety of children at risk must always be the paramount concern for LAs [1] www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-safeguard-children

Children's Centres

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which (a) voluntary sector providers, (b) community organisations and (c) private sector organisations run children's centres; and which such centres each such organisation runs.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The Department for Education has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Children's Centres

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, (a) how many and (b) which children's centres in each local authority area are run by (i) local authorities, (ii) schools, (iii) voluntary sector providers, (iv) community organisations (v) private sector organisations and (vi) other organisations.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The Department for Education has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Young Offender Institutions: Education

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average number of hours of education provided per week was for a young offender in young offender institutions in (a) 2012-13 and (b) 2013-14.

Mr David Laws: As part of the Transforming Youth Custody Programme, the Government will shortly announce the outcome of a competition for new education contracts in under-18 Young Offender Institutions, which will aim to more than double the average number of hours of education provided for young people each week. The Government is taking forward reforms of Young Offender Institutions to support a stronger focus on education and reduce interruptions that impact on the number of hours provided. The question asked about the average number of hours of education provided per week for a young offender in young offender institutions can only be answered at disproportionate cost.

South West

Sarah Newton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will estimate how much her Department has spent in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly in each year since 2007-08.

Mr David Laws: Information in the form requested is not held centrally and cannot be compiled without incurring disproportionate cost.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Animal Welfare

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many (a) broiler chickens, (b) laying hens, (c) cattle, (d) sheep, (e) pigs and (f) other farmed animals died prior to slaughter as a result of (i) fires, (ii) flooding, (iii) exposure to extreme weather, (iv) road crashes, (v) disease and (vi) injury in each of the last three years.

George Eustice: Defra does not record this information centrally, but mortality data is recorded at individual farm level. The Welfare of Farmed Animals (England) Regulations 2007 requires that all farmed animals must be inspected at least once a day. The number of mortalities found at each inspection has to be recorded and must be made available to an inspector on request.

Animal Welfare

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to oblige farms to put in place contingency and evacuation plans to minimise the risk of farm fires to animals.

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will bring forward proposals for a hazard inspection regime to minimise the risk of farm fires and unnecessary farm animal deaths.

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the Government's policy is on the protection of farm animals and livestock sheds located on flood plains.

George Eustice: All livestock farms need to have an on-farm health and welfare plan drawn up in conjunction with their veterinary surgeon which include contingency plans to deal with emergency situations, such as fire, floods or disruption of supplies. Defra’s species specific Codes of Recommendations for the Welfare of Livestock, which all stock keepers have to have access to and knowledge of, sets out advice on making emergency precautions.  The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) carries out welfare inspections on farms to check that the UK legislation and Defra’s welfare codes are being followed.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what proportion of (a) her Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by her Department are paid less than the Living Wage.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what proportion of (a) her Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by her Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what proportion of (a) her Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by her Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) women and (ii) men.

Dan Rogerson: Core Defra has no direct employees paid less than the living wage.   There are currently 4 temporary staff from employment agencies who are paid less than the UK Living Wage and employed outside London, and 3 in London paid less than the London Living Wage. These numbers can change at any time.   There are 215 people paid less than the UK Living Wage employed on 2 major contracts, arranged by the core Department and working across the network. There are 40 people working in London and paid less than the London Living Wage.   Information on the breakdown of gender and ethnicity of these people and the proportion they represent is held by the contractors and not core Defra and is only available at disproportionate cost.

Furniture

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many desks are in her Department's main building; how many such desks are (a) owned and (b) leased by her Department; and what the cost is per desk of leasing.

Dan Rogerson: Core Defra has 1528 office desks in its main buildings at Nobel House and 9 Millbank, London, all of which are owned by the Department.

Rivers: Hertfordshire

Sir Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 1 December 2014 to Question 216087, which flora and fauna found in the the rivers Beane and Mimram he would expect to benefit from less abstraction from the rivers.

Dan Rogerson: The abstraction reductions, combined with the rehabilitation of the river habitat, should see a substantial improvement in the flora and fauna in these chalk streams.   It is not possible to link the return of species directly with the new flow regime. However, the Environment Agency can give examples of species it expects to see benefit as a result of reduced abstraction.   Generally, the Environment Agency expects fish such as brown trout and bullhead will benefit from reduced abstraction. It also expects macro-invertebrate species such as mayflies (example blue winged olive Serratella ignita), caddis flies (example freeliving caddis Rhyacophila dorsalis) and stoneflies (rolledwinged, nemourid stoneflies) and plant species such as water crowfoot (Ranunculus) will benefit. Reduced abstraction will also help clean the gravel bed of silt, which will improve fish spawning.   The Environment Agency, Affinity Water and local river groups are working together on a monitoring programme to further help understand how these ecological communities respond to and recover from reduced abstraction.

Rivers

Sir Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the global environmental significance of chalk rivers; and if she will make a statement.

Dan Rogerson: There are 161 chalk rivers across England, representing some 85% of the world’s chalk river resource (other chalk rivers being found in northern France and New Zealand). The Government recognises the environmental and cultural importance of this rare river habitat, which is well represented in both the national and European designated site network in recognition of its particular importance in a European context.

Wildlife: Smuggling

Susan Elan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to monitor the use of the internet for wildlife-related criminal activity.

Dan Rogerson: We recognise that the internet can be used as a route for wildlife-related criminal activity, including illegal trade in species covered by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).   The illegal trade in CITES species is one of the six UK wildlife crime priorities and action to tackle such trade is spearheaded by the UK CITES Priority Delivery Group (CPDG) comprising Border Force, the Metropolitan Police Wildlife Crime Unit and the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU). Defra has provided additional funding to the NWCU this year to conduct research into wildlife crime on the internet and we will be considering the findings of their report.   Powers are available in the UK to tackle illegal internet trade in wildlife products under the Control of Trade in Endangered Species (COTES) legislation. This legislation is currently under review. The review will consider trends in illegal trade and the enforcement practices needed to combat this, including the increasing use of the internet to conduct trade in wildlife products.   More broadly the National Crime Agency (NCA) focuses on the relentless disruption of serious and organised criminals and those that present the highest risk to the UK and its communities. Where high risk organised criminals are engaged in illegal wildlife trade the NCA will lead, support or coordinate an appropriate level of response. That response could include the NCA’s niche capabilities such as the National Cyber Crime Unit or its global network of liaison officers.

Crime: Nature Conservation

Mr John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the consultation documents for the review of the Control of Trade in Endangered Species (Enforcement) Regulations will be published.

George Eustice: On current plans it is our intention to issue a public consultation on proposals to update and improve the Control of Trade in Endangered Species (Enforcement) Regulations, together with the Control of Trade in Endangered Species (Ports of Entry) Regulations, early in the new year.

Flood Control: Humber Estuary

Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate she has made of the damage to property and infrastructure that potentially could be prevented by (a) the £80 million flood defences announced for the Humber in the National Infrastructure Plan and (b) the £1.3 billion tidal Humber defence programme currently under review.

Dan Rogerson: The case for investment in flood defence schemes, including those announced for the Humber in the National Infrastructure Plan, is based on the benefits in terms of the economic damages of flooding avoided by the work. The approach follows HM Treasury’s guidance on the appraisal of central government investment options (The Green Book).   The Environment Agency will conduct a review to consider the ambitious £1.3 billion proposal put forward by the Local Enterprise Partnership and local authorities as part of its update of the Flood Risk Management Study. This will take full account of the lessons learned from the tidal surge in December 2013 and use the same nationally consistent approach to valuing the benefits of the proposals.

Disabled Staff

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many people with a disability work in her Department; and if she will make a statement.

Dan Rogerson: As at 30 November 2014, 151 staff in core Defra had declared that they were disabled. This represents 12% of staff who declared their disability status.

Rivers

Sir Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress she has made on improving the cleanliness of Britain's chalk rivers.

Dan Rogerson: Chalk rivers are well represented in both the national and European designated site network, which aims to protect sites of high conservation value. Action is under way on the majority of these sites to address pressures such as physical modification, effluent, diffuse pollution and abstraction.   A strategic programme of physical habitat restoration is under way on these rivers (including the 11 chalk river Sites of Special Scientific Interest that need restoration). Led jointly by Natural England and the Environment Agency, it involves a range of statutory and voluntary sector partners. Some 70 kilometres of chalk stream have been improved since 2011.   Defra has provided funding to support these activities. A new catchment-based approach to support river basin management planning is strengthening local engagement and helping the Environment Agency to better understand and respond to pressures on the water environment.   Water companies are investing £3.4 billion between 2010 and 2015 to support the achievement of Water Framework Directive environmental objectives. This has contributed to substantial reductions in phosphate pollution, to which chalk streams are particularly sensitive, and additional investment is proposed to secure further improvements. Water companies are also engaged in research to overcome technical limitations on phosphorus reduction.   Changes have been made to 44 abstraction licences affecting chalk streams. The Water Act 2014 will enable the Environment Agency to make further progress in preventing unsustainable abstraction. The Government is also putting in place a balanced package of measures to further tackle agricultural pollution   The benefits of these actions are likely to take some time to be reflected in reported water body status because the environment can take a considerable time to recover once pressures have been reduced.

Older Workers

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many people working in her Department are over 65 years old; and if she will make a statement.

Dan Rogerson: As at 30 November 2014, 27 staff in core Defra were over 65 years of age. This represents 1.2% of the workforce.

Fisheries: Quotas

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with fishing organisations on quota arrangements to be agreed in a meeting in Brussels this month.

George Eustice: In preparation for the negotiations to agree 2015 fishing opportunities I have held regular meetings with industry representatives from around the UK, as well as with environmental NGOs.

Rivers: North Tyneside

Mrs Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will take steps to expedite the licence application made by North Tyneside Council to the Marine Management Organisation to enable repair work to the quay walls and the dredging of the riverside berth.

George Eustice: I understand that this is an important local issue, and that the Marine Management Organisation has recently met with the Council and agreed on the next steps to be taken by the Council and by the MMO.

Dolphins: Japan

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make representations to the government of Japan about the killing of wild dolphins in Taiji.

George Eustice: We have raised the UK’s continuing concerns over the hunting of small cetaceans in Japanese waters, including in Taiji, on several occasions this year. I wrote to my Japanese counterpart in February, and HM Ambassador to Japan wrote to the Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs in January.   Furthermore, the UK’s Commissioner to the International Whaling Commission (IWC) raised this issue at the biennial meeting of the IWC in September 2014, as well as directly with the Japanese Commissioner to the IWC in bilateral meetings and with a representative from the Japanese Embassy in early December.   The UK Government will continue to express its opposition to the Japanese small cetacean hunts at every appropriate opportunity.

Ministers' Private Offices

Mrs Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many staff in ministerial offices in her Department were appointed from (a) the Civil Service and (b) other bodies (i) between May 2005 and May 2010 and (ii) since May 2010.

Dan Rogerson: The information requested is not available as staff working in ministerial offices are not separately identifiable on Defra’s HR IT system across the periods of time covered by the question.

Department for Energy and Climate Change

Wind Power: Seas and Oceans

Mr Mike Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate he has made of the capacity of offshore wind projects likely to bid for Contracts for Difference awarded by his Department in April 2014.

Matthew Hancock: Holding answer received on 10 December 2014



No Contracts for Difference were awarded in April 2014.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department are paid less than the Living Wage.

Amber Rudd: I can confirm that none of the Department's staff or staff working for companies contracted by the Department are paid less than the Living Wage as defined by the Living Wage Foundation.

Energy: Prices

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if he will discuss with his counterparts in the devolved administrations the effect of the number of energy suppliers on the consumer price across the UK; and where that price is (a) highest and (b) lowest.

Matthew Hancock: Holding answer received on 11 December 2014



Competition in the energy markets is crucial to keeping prices as low as possible and to raising consumer confidence in the energy market. Since 2010 we have seen 12 new companies enter the British domestic market challenging the existing companies. Despite this there are concerns about the level of competition therefore Ofgem has referred the market to the Competition and Markets Authority for a full Market Investigation.Energy policy is devolved to the Northern Irish Assembly.DECC publish regional electricity and gas bills information in Quarterly Energy Prices. Differences between regions are due to several factors including regional variation in pricing and the proportion of consumers who have switched supplier onto cheaper tariffs. DECC estimate that in 2013 the average retail electricity bill was highest in the North Scotland and lowest in the East Midlands and that the average retail gas bill is highest in London and lowest in North Scotland. Source: DECC Quarterly Energy Prices, table 2.2.3 for electricity and 2.3.3 for gas https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/annual-domestic-energy-price-statistics. Provisional estimates for regional bills for 2014 will be published Thursday 18th December 2014. Northern Ireland data is included in the electricity comparison but DECC do not publish gas bills for Northern Ireland.)

Staff

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much his Department has spent on (a) consultants, (b) temporary staff and (c) contingent labour in each of the last five years; how many people have been so employed; what the length of contract of each such person was; and what equivalent civil service salary band each was on.

Amber Rudd: The Department of Energy & Climate Change regularly publishes, as part of the Coalition Governments Transparency Agenda, details of the size and cost of its entire workforce on its website. The full details can be found at:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/decc-workforce-management-informationhttps://www.gov.uk/government/collections/decc-annual-reports-and-accountsContract details and the equivalent civil service salary bands for each individual are not held centrally and to gather this information would incur disproportionate costs.

Older Workers

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many people working in his Department are over 65 years old; and if he will make a statement.

Amber Rudd: As of 30 November 2014, there were 13 civil servants over the age of 65 working in the Department of Energy and Climate Change.

Disabled Staff

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many people with a disability work in his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Amber Rudd: As of 30 November 2014, there were 86 civil servants, working in the Department of Energy and Climate Change, who had declared that they had a disability.

South West

Sarah Newton: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if he will estimate how much his Department spent has spent in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly in each year since 2007-08.

Amber Rudd: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Fracking: Scotland

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what recent discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on (a) its policy on the extraction of shale gas and (b) the recommendation in the Smith Commission Report to devolve shale gas mineral access rights to the Scottish Parliament.

Matthew Hancock: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Power Failures

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to the press release published by his Department on 8 January 2014, customer communications at heart of review into dealing with widespread power cuts, when he plans that the emergency telephone number which households can call if they experience a power cut will be operational.

Matthew Hancock: The Energy Networks Association leads on the establishment of a Single Emergency Number (SEN) for use during a power cut. The project is due for completion in April 2016.

Power Failures

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to the press release published by his Department on 8 January 2014, customer communications at heart of review into dealing with widespread power cuts, what steps his Department has taken to establish an emergency telephone number which households can call if they experience a power cut.

Matthew Hancock: The Energy Networks Association (ENA) leads on the project to establish a Single Emergency Number (SEN). DECC officials are represented at both Project Board and task group level to oversee implementation. My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State met with the CEO of ENA recently and underlined the importance he attaches to the project.

Power Stations

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate his Department has made of the dispatch period required to increase capacity at (a) nuclear, (b) combined cycle gas turbine, (c) open cycle gas turbine and (d) coal-fired power stations.

Matthew Hancock: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Fossil Fuelled Power Stations

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much of the plant which has qualified for the first auction of the capacity market is fossil-fuel burning plant of less than 20MW capacity, given (a) in MW and (b) as a proportion of the total capacity qualifying for the auction.

Matthew Hancock: Fossil fuelled fired plant which has prequalified and confirmed its participation in the capacity auction and which is less than 20MW (on a de-rated capacity basis), totals around 1,950MW of de-rated capacity. This is about 3% of the total of 64,969MW of de-rated capacity which will participate in the auction.The full list of capacity that has pre-qualified can be found on the National Grid website:https://www.emrdeliverybody.com/pages/Home.aspx?ReturnUrl=%2f_layouts%2f15%2fAuthenticate.aspx%3fSource%3d%252F&Source=%2F

Electricity: Billing

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate his Department has made of the additional cost to electricity suppliers in the capacity market of carrying the liability for meeting the payments of a defaulting participant.

Matthew Hancock: The Department has not made an estimate of the additional cost to suppliers of carrying the liability in the event of one participant defaulting. In the first instance each supplier is required to post credit cover which will be used to cover a missed payment. In the unlikely event a defaulted payment is mutualised across other suppliers, the actual amount would depend on the overall cost of the capacity market payments in that year, and the share of these costs due to be paid by the defaulting supplier. Electricity suppliers have been consulted on these arrangements.

Power Stations

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate his Department has made of the Cost of New Entry, represented as £/MHh for (a) 800MW OCGT, (b) 800MW CCGT, (c) gas plant sub-20MW and (d) oil plant sub-20MW.

Matthew Hancock: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Wind Power: Seas and Oceans

Mr Mike Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if he will estimate the expenditure made to date by the developers of offshore wind projects which have received consent under section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989 which he expects to be unsuccessful in the contracts for difference process.

Matthew Hancock: The National Grid, as the Electricity Market Reform Delivery Body, are currently assessing applications for Contracts for Difference under the first Contract for Difference allocation round. Under the strictures of the process the Department does not know, at this point of time, information about individual applications, numbers of applications or numbers that have qualified. As a result the Department is unable to speculate on any applications for offshore wind projects likely to be unsuccessful in the contracts for difference process under our Electricity Market Reform project. In addition, any unsuccessful applicants, should there be any, would have the opportunity to apply for support in future rounds.

Deputy Prime Minister

Electoral Register

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what steps he is taking to ensure that students are registered to vote.

Mr Sam Gyimah: This Government has made it easier than ever before to register to vote. Electors can apply to register online in less than three minutes, using any device with internet access. This particularly helps regular home movers like students to register quickly and conveniently.All potential electors, including students at their term time address, are being contacted individually, both by letter and in person, to complete their registration.The Government established a national student forum in 2013, bringing together organisations representing students, universities and local authorities to agree practical steps to encourage students to register to vote.In addition, every Electoral Registration Officer in Great Britain received a share of £4.2m funding to help with the costs of maximising voter registration. This was allocated favourably towards areas with high student populations.

Attorney General

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Attorney General, how many members of the Law Officers' Departments' executive board are (a) male and (b) female.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Attorney General, how many members of the Law Officers' Departments' executive board are (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic background.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Attorney General, how many members of the Law Officers' Departments' executive board are disabled.

Mr Robert Buckland: The following table contains the information requested that is available. There is no compulsory requirement for staff to declare their ethnicity, or if they have a disability and such data is therefore incomplete.   Law Officer’s Departments – Executive or Senior Management Board membersDepartmentMaleFemaleDeclared disabledDeclared whiteDeclared other ethnicityAttorney General’s Office43020Crown Prosecution Service52060Serious Fraud Office1040110HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate32021Treasury Solicitor’s Department54080

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Attorney General, how many and what proportion of (a) the Law Officers' Departments' staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by the Law Officers' Departments are paid less than the Living Wage.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Attorney General, how many and what proportion of (a) the Law Officers' Departments' staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by the Law Officers' Departments who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Attorney General, how many and what proportion of (a) the Law Officers' Departments' staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by the Law Officers' Departments who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) women and (ii) men.

Mr Robert Buckland: The CPS currently employs one member of staff whose salary is below the rate defined by the Living Wage Foundation. As a result of proposed changes to pay ranges, this employee will be paid a salary in excess of the living wage by 1st April 2015.   No direct employees of the Treasury Solicitor’s Office are paid less than the living wage. However, at 30 September 2014 The Treasury Solicitor’s Office had eleven temporary workers in London receiving less than the living wage although this position will change after 12 weeks of engagement in line with the Agency Workers legislation. At that point, their salary will increase to a higher rate of pay comparable to the rate of a direct employee. All other temporary workers are paid more than the living wage.   In order to protect personal data of individuals, we are unable to provide any details of gender or ethnicity (where held), given the small numbers involved, as publication of this information could inadvertently reveal the identity of the member of staff. No direct employees or temporary workers employed by the remaining Law Officers' Departments are paid less than the living wage. A complete record on the pay arrangements for staff employed by companies contracted to provide services to the Law Officers' Departments is not held and could not be provided without incurring a disproportionate cost.

Religious Hatred

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Attorney General, how many people were charged with inciting religious hatred in each of the last five years.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Attorney General, how many people were charged with inciting racial hatred in each of the last five years.

Mr Robert Buckland: Allegations of inciting religious and racial hatred are by their very nature highly sensitive. For that reason, and to ensure a consistent approach, all charging decisions and prosecutions are dealt with by the Special Crime & Counter Terrorism Division of the Crown Prosecution Service. All such prosecutions require the consent of the Attorney General.There have been 4 people charged with inciting religious hatred over the last 5 years, split as follows: YearNumber2014320130201202011020101 There have been 5 people charged with inciting racial hatred over the last five years, split as follows: YearNumber2014020131201202011320101

Older Workers

Simon Kirby: To ask the Attorney General, how many people worked in his Department after their 65th birthday in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Robert Buckland: Over the last 12 months a total of twenty-five permanent staff over the age of 65 have worked in the Attorney General’s Office, Treasury Solicitor’s Office and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate.In December 2013 and January 2014 the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) had 4 permanent members of staff who worked after their 65 birthday. From February 2014 the SFO had 5 members of staff who worked after their 65 birthday.During the period 1 December 2013 – 30 November 2014 the Crown Prosecution Service employed 76 people who were aged 65 or over.

Legal Costs

Sarah Teather: To ask the Attorney General, how much has been paid by the Treasury Solicitor's Department in legal costs relating to the case of the Public Law Project v. The Secretary of State for Justice ([2014] EWHC 2365 (Admin)).

Mr Robert Buckland: The only sums paid to date by the Treasury Solicitor’s Department are disbursements in the sum of £61,229.59. There are additional disbursements paid by the Ministry of Justice direct.

Furniture

Helen Goodman: To ask the Attorney General, how many desks are in the Law Officers' Departments' main building; how many such desks are (a) owned and (b) leased by the Law Officers' Departments; and what the cost is per desk of leasing.

Mr Robert Buckland: The AGO has 57 desks used by AGO staff in its main building in 20 Victoria Street, London. All of these desks are owned by the AGO.   The main building of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is Rose Court in London. In that building there are 936 desks. All of these are owned by the CPS.   The Serious Fraud office are based exclusively in 2-4 Cockspur Street, London. They own 491 desks outright and none are leased.   The Treasury Solicitor’s Department (TSol) main building is located at One Kemble Street in London; HMCPSI is a sub-lessee of this accommodation. There are 938 desks within the building:   TSol owns all of the desks and TSol staff use 856 of these. A total of 82 desks are leased. HMCPSI use 28 desks and a further 54 desks are used by London Continental Railways (LCR), another sub lessee of this accommodation.   The cost to HMCPSI per desk is £3105.61 and to LCR is £2840.74.

Disabled Staff

Simon Kirby: To ask the Attorney General, how many people with a disability work in the Law Officers' Departments; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Robert Buckland: The information requested is contained in the following table.   Law Officers’ DepartmentNumber declared as disabled*Treasury Solicitor’s Department**71Serious Fraud Office15Crown Prosecution Service400 * The number of disabled staff represents those staff who have chosen to declare themselves as such. ** TSol data also includes the AGO and HMCPSI.

Shoplifting: Prosecutions

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Attorney General, how many prosecutions there have been for shoplifting in each of the last five years.

Mr Robert Buckland: Theft from a shop is one way in which the offence of Theft contrary to Section 1(1) & 7 of the Theft Act 1968 is committed. There is no specific offence of that title. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of the number of prosecutions for the specific offence of shoplifting. Identifying the number of prosecutions in which there was one or more charges relating to theft from a shop would require a manual exercise to review individual files which would incur a disproportionate cost.   The CPS does maintain a central record of the number of offences of shoplifting charged under section 1 of the Theft Act 1968 in which a prosecution commenced and reached a first hearing in magistrates’ courts. It is not possible to identify the number of defendants or cases prosecuted from this data. The table below shows the number of shoplifting offences that reached a first hearing for the last five years:  Theft Act 1968 { 1(1) and 7 }: Theft from a shop2009-2010111,3862010-2011115,1122011-2012116,1152012-2013113,2582013-2014124,621   The CPS’s offences data provides no indication of the final prosecution outcome, or if the charged offence was the substantive charge at the time of finalisation. It is also often the case that an individual defendant is charged with more than one offence against the same victim.

Wales Office

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) male and (b) female.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic background.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many members of his Department's executive board are disabled.

Alun Cairns: The Wales Office Management Committee consists of six members; five are male and one is female; three have declared themselves as non-disabled, three members have not made any declaration; and three have declared themselves as white British, the other three members have not made any declaration.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department are paid less than the Living Wage.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) women and (ii) men.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

Alun Cairns: The Wales Office has no direct employees or contracted workers. Staff at the Wales Office are subject to Ministry of Justice (MoJ) policies for pay purposes. No Wales Office staff are paid less than the living wage.

Infrastructure

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what investment the Government has made in infrastructure in Wales since May 2010; and what estimate he has made of the level of that investment in the next five years.

Stephen Crabb: The Government has made huge progress in delivering the infrastructure that the UK needs, establishing the first ever national infrastructure plan, which now shows that more than 2,500 projects have been completed since 2010.We have invested over £69 million to provide superfast broadband to over 275,000 homes and businesses in Wales and work has begun on the £212 million investment at the new prison in north Wales. We have provided the Welsh Government with £924 million in additional capital spending power since the Spending Review in 2010, and the Welsh Government will be able to borrow up to £500 million to enable them to complete the investment needed on the M4.Over the next five years Wales will benefit from major infrastructure projects, including the electrification of the south Wales mainline and the Valley lines rail network. The Government will also continue to work with Hitachi and Horizon to secure the new investment in energy generation at Wylfa Newydd.

Furniture

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many desks are in his Department's main building; how many such desks are (a) owned and (b) leased by his Department; and what the cost is per desk of leasing.

Alun Cairns: The Wales Office has 44 desks in its main building which are all owned by the Department.

Ministry of Justice

Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much was spent on legal aid for Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures (TPIMs) suspects in each of the last four years; and how much his Department spent on legal advice and representation associated to cases on the TPIMs regime in each such year.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The Terrorism Prevention and Investigations Act 2011 came into force in December 2011, and the first TPIM notices were imposed in January 2012. No TPIM notices were in force prior to January 2012. Financial Year 2011-122012-132013-14Total Expenditure (£'000) 519363221 The table above shows the total legal aid expenditure on Control Order/TPIM proceedings for each of the last 3 financial years. In the transitional period of 2011-2012 control orders and TPIM were not differentiated for legal aid billing purposes, and this data is not comparable. This represents between 0.03 – 0.05% of civil and total Legal Aid cash spend for the four years in question. Anyone facing a trial, or issue where their liberty may be at risk, is eligible to apply for legal aid to ensure they have access to justice. The Legal Aid Agency rigorously assesses all applications on the basis of financial means and merits.The Ministry of Justice does not hold any spend data on legal advice and representation associated to cases on the TPIMs regime as the administration costs of legal aid for applicants entitled to legal aid under paragraph 45 Schedule 1 LASPO 2012, which is where TPIMs sit, would not be classed as legal advice and representation.

Employment Tribunals Service

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many employment tribunal cases have been brought against companies signed up to the Government's Think, Act, Report scheme since the launch of that scheme.

Mr Shailesh Vara: Data on the number of Employment Tribunal cases brought against companies signed up to the Government’s Think, Act, Report scheme is not held on central or local databases by HM Courts & Tribunal Service, and a manual check of every file would incur disproportionate cost. Also, complete data is not available, as files are not retained after twelve months from the judgment date, in accordance with HMCTS’ record retention scheme.

Judiciary

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of members of the judiciary are (a) men and (b) women.

Mr Shailesh Vara: General judicial diversity information is in the public domain and is available on the judiciary website: http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/publications/judicial-diversity-statistics-2014/ This Government takes judicial diversity very seriously and has taken steps to improve representation, while still appointing the best people for the job. There are a number of measures we have put in place to date, including the introduction of the equal merit provision, which takes diversity into account between two equally merited candidates; extending salaried part time working to the high court and working with the judiciary, Judicial Appointments Commission and representative groups to undertake outreach work, mentoring and support for potential candidates from diverse backgrounds. We have already seen some positive changes, between 2009 and 2013 women made up nearly half of all judicial appointments. But we recognise there is still more to do, particularly at the higher end which is why we will continue to work with all concerned towards a judiciary that reflects the society it serves.

Judiciary

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of members of the judiciary are identified as (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic minority group.

Mr Shailesh Vara: General judicial diversity information is in the public domain and is available on the judiciary website: http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/publications/judicial-diversity-statistics-2014/

Religious Hatred

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted of inciting religious hatred in each of the last five years.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted of inciting racial hatred in each of the last five years.

Mike Penning: Hate crime of any form is unacceptable and taken very seriously by the Government. That’s why there are tough sentencing options available to the courts and we’re working with the police to increase reporting of these terrible offences. This country has some of the toughest laws in the world around hate crime and offenders who commit such crimes should be in no doubt that they will face a more severe sentence. The number of offenders found guilty of offences relating to inciting racial and religious hatred in England and Wales, from 2009 to 2013, can be viewed in the table. Offenders found guilty at all courts of offences related to racial (1) or religious hatred (2), England and Wales, 2009 to 2013 (3)(4)(5)  Group20092010201120122013  Racial696-3  Religious22--1  '-' = Nil  (1) Offences under SS 18 - 22 Public Order Act 1986, stirring up hatred on the grounds of race. (2) Offences under SS 29B - 29 F Public Order Act 1986, stirring up hatred on the grounds of religion. (3) The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (4) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (5) Prior to 23 March 2010, only acts intended to stir up religious hatred were reported. When Sections 29B to 29G of the Public Order Act 1986 were amended by the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008, offences for acts intended to stir up hatred on grounds of sexual orientation were added to offences for acts intended to stir up religious hatred. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services - Ministry of Justice.Ref: PQ 217289 217290

Courts: Security Guards

Mr Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 18 November 2014 to Question 213482, what changes there have been in the number of security staff at (a) Crown courts and (b) magistrates' courts in each year since 2010.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The table below provides the number of security staff since 2010. 20102011201220132014CrownMagsCrownMagsCrownMagsCrownMagsCrownMags385856384840389770386699380656 The amount of security staff required has decreased over the period, due to the reduction in the number of Crown and Magistrates’ courts.

Legal Aid Scheme

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 3 December 2014 to Question 214194, what the names are of the barristers referred to in that Answer.

Mr Shailesh Vara: As the Legal Aid Agency has not yet notified the remaining barristers of its intention to release this information, I will write to the hon member when the information is able to be disclosed.

Employment Tribunals Service

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when his Department will begin a review of employment tribunal fees and the effect of such fees on the employment tribunal system.

Mr Shailesh Vara: Fees were introduced in Employment Tribunals to reduce the burden on the taxpayer of paying for Employment Tribunals and to encourage parties to seek alternative ways of resolving their disputes. It is only fair that those who can afford to do so should make some contribution to the cost of the service. The Government has committed to carry out a comprehensive review of the introduction of Employment Tribunal fees. An announcement on the scope and timing of the review will be made in due course.

Judicial Review

Mr Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the contribution of the Secretary of State for Justice on 1 December 2014, Official Report, column 73, on how many occasions in the last two years each government department has been threatened with judicial review; and in each such case, whether judicial review proceedings were subsequently (a) launched and (b) successful.

Mr Shailesh Vara: This information is not available. A ‘threat’ of judicial review could range for example from a pre-action letter sent to a central government department to an oral suggestion made at a stakeholder meeting. It is crucial that judicial review continues to hold public authorities to account for the right reasons. The Government’s reforms strike a fair and sensible balance between limiting the potential for the abuse of judicial review and protecting its vital role as a check on public authorities.

Shoplifting

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people convicted of shoplifting were first-time offenders in each of the last five years.

Mike Penning: Shoplifting can have a serious financial impact on the businesses affected and the local economy and prosecutions will be brought where appropriate.The table below shows the number of first time offenders to the criminal justice system in England and Wales convicted for Shoplifting in the 12 months ending June 2010 to 12 months ending June 2014.First time offenders to the criminal justice system(1) in England and Wales, convicted for Shoplifting, 12 months ending June 2010 to 12 months ending June 2014  12 month period to the end of JuneNumber of offenders20102,10620112,03220121,92420131,82620141,887  Source: Police National Computer, Ministry of JusticeNotes: (1) Offenders recorded on the Police National Computer by an English or Welsh police force as having received their first conviction. Where there were multiple offences on the same occasion, the figures only include primary offences recorded as shoplifting on the Police National Computer. The Ministry of Justice’s extract of the Police National Computer (PNC), which is used for all analyses of offenders’ histories, only holds details on convictions given for recordable offences and does not generally include non-recordable summary offences usually heard in Magistrates courts. In addition, as with any large scale recording system the PNC is subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Altcourse Prison

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will take HM Prison Altcourse back into public ownership.

Andrew Selous: There are no plans to return HMP Altcourse to public ownership. As a contracted-out prison, Altcourse has generally been a high-performing establishment. In the most recent performance ratings (published 31 July 2014), it was rated Level 3 (out of four levels, of which Level 4 is the highest). The National Offender Management Service is working closely with the contractor to ensure that issues in relation to recent events at the prison are fully and swiftly addressed, and will continue to monitor the prison’s progress closely.

Altcourse Prison

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will publish the contract with G4S to manage HM Prison Altcourse.

Andrew Selous: The contract for HM Prison Altcourse is available in the House of Commons Library. In addition the contract will be published on Contracts Finder on or before the end of January 2015.

Altcourse Prison

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many staff vacancies there are at HM Prison Altcourse; and for how long each position has been vacant.

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the total number was of (a) full-time and (b) part-time staff at HM Prison Altcourse in each year since 2005.

Andrew Selous: The information requested could not be obtained within the timescale. I will write to the hon Member in due course.

Cabinet Office

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) male and (b) female.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many members of his Department's executive board are disabled.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic background.

Mr Francis Maude: Details of Cabinet Office board is availablehere: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/cabinet-office/groups/cabinet-office-boardFurther individual details are not normally disclosed when numbers are so small that individuals can be identified.

Pay

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department are paid less than the Living Wage.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) white British and (ii) from an ethnic minority background.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of (a) his Department's staff and (b) staff working for companies contracted by his Department who are paid less than the Living Wage are (i) women and (ii) men.

Mr Francis Maude: I refer to my answer of 17 October 2014 to the Rt Hon. Member for Birkenhead, to question 209463.Information about gender, disabilities, and ethnicity of staff working for companies contracted by the Cabinet Office is not held centrally.

Cybercrime

Chris Evans: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps the Government takes to support UK companies in protecting their intellectual property from cyber-attacks.

Chris Evans: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps the Government takes to protect UK infrastructure from cyber-attacks.

Chris Evans: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps the Government takes to protect official records from cyber-attacks.

Mr Francis Maude: I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement I made on Thursday 11 December 2014 to the House; “Third Annual Report on Progress on the UK Cyber Security Strategy: Protecting and Promoting the UK in a Digital World” and the accompanying progress report “The UK Cyber Security Strategy: Report on progress and forward plans – December 2014”.

Civil Servants: Pensions

Sir Roger Gale: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether all payments of pensions payable to retired civil servants resident overseas are up to date; and whether the MyCSP mutual venture system and its associated information technology are working efficiently.

Mr Francis Maude: MyCSP Ltd took over administration of the Civil Service pensioner payroll in September 2014. The majority of the 658,000 pensioners - 14,000 of them are overseas - have been paid accurately and on time since September.During the transfer MyCSP unexpectedly inherited 5,579 cases from the previous supplier where payments had been delayed or missed. MyCSP has now cleared all but 740 of these. 109 of the remaining cases are overseas pensioners awaiting payments because new banking mandates need to be completed to allow processing by the new paying bank. MyCSP is working to clear the remaining cases where payments are due before Christmas (but are in some cases dependent on employers or pensioner members for the necessary information to do so). Where delayed payment is causing hardship MyCSP has been making emergency interim payments to members.The recent service issues are not a result of the mutual joint-venture (MJV) model. In fact, the mutual joint venture has enabled investment in new technology to replace legacy systems. This transformation will allow MyCSP to deliver a wider range of services (including online services) to higher standards whilst almost halving the cost of pensions administration over 10 years.Since mutualisation, MyCSP has improved productivity by 15% year-on-year, driven down staff absenteeism and has improved both staff engagement and customer satisfaction, despite inheriting legacy systems.

Government Departments: Fraud and Administration

Lucy Powell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the cost was of (a) fraud and (b) error across government in the last year.

Mr Francis Maude: The latest audited fraud and error figures available are for 2012/13. During this year DWP reported £3.5 billion on benefits and pensions and HMRC reported £2.01 billion on tax credits. Reported fraud and error across the rest of central government was £70 million, however this figure does not include all arm’s length bodies.   In 2011 this Government established the Fraud, Error and Debt Taskforce to develop and coordinate the delivery of initiatives across government as previously no systematic attempt had been made. It has achieved significant improvements, including the appointment at Departmental board level of an accountable individual with responsibility for identifying and reducing fraud and error losses in their department.

Government Departments: Procurement

Lucy Powell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what proportion of Government contracts of what value were allocated to small and medium-sized enterprises based in each region and constituent part of the UK in each of the last three years.

Mr Francis Maude: At the time of the last General Election there was no consistent monitoring of Government spend with small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). We have put in place a raft of policies to overhaul procurement, reduce bureaucracy and increase transparency. Our work has significantly increased the proportion of spend going to SMEs.Information on Government contracts over £10,000 is now published on contracts finder. A new version on Contracts Finder will be launched shortly which will allow users to search by area.The Government Digital Service publishes information on their supplier spend. This shows the success of our work to diversify our supplier base for digital technology and services. £189m of business through G-Cloud has gone to SMEs. See link: https://assets.digital.cabinet-office.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/image_data/file/28167/org-landscape-09.png

Infant Mortality

Luciana Berger: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the infant mortality rate was in England in the last year for which figures are available; and what the infant mortality rate for the Gypsy and Traveller community was in England in that period.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply. 



ONS Letter to Member - Infant Mortality Rate
(PDF Document, 115.94 KB)

Cervical Cancer

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many women under the age of 25 were diagnosed with cervical cancer in the (a) borough of Barnsley and (b) UK in (i) 2013 and (ii) 2014.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply. 



ONS Letter to Member - Cervical Cancer
(PDF Document, 111.27 KB)

Crown Commercial Service

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what performance data Crown Commercial Services (a) collects or (b) recommends be collected from public sector contractors.

Mr Francis Maude: Before 2010 Whitehall didn't know how much business departments did with strategic suppliers. The Government has developed a new approach to how it engages with its strategic suppliers, including establishing a network of Crown Representatives to manage these relationships. The Crown Commercial Service collects performance reports in relation to contracts held by strategic suppliers, as set out in the Strategic Supplier Risk Management (SSRM) policy.

Food Banks

Chris Bryant: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when he has visited a foodbank.

Mr Francis Maude: I visited Oxford Food Bank on 12 June 2014.

Personal Savings

Pamela Nash: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent estimate he has made of the average level of (a) household and (b) personal savings for each (i) gender, (ii) age and (iii) income bracket.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply. 



ONS Letter to Member - Household / Personal Saving
(PDF Document, 153.18 KB)

Debts

Pamela Nash: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the number of people with debt, excluding student loans, of (a) up to £5,000, (b) between £5,000 and £10,000, (c) between £10,000 and £20,000 and (d) more than £30,000 (i) in each year since 2010 and (ii) in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply. 



ONS Letter to Member - People with Debt
(PDF Document, 105.6 KB)

Iraq Committee of Inquiry

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he has had discussions with Sir John Chilcot on whether the report of the Iraq Inquiry will be published before the next General Election; what information his Department holds on the reasons for the time taken to publish that report; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Francis Maude: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Dwyfor Meirionnydd on 11 December 2014 to UIN 217676.

Staff

Helen Goodman: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many staff are employed in his Department's headquarter buildings.

Mr Francis Maude: As part of the Transparency Agenda, all Government Departments, their agencies and public bodies now publish monthly statistics on their workforce. For the Cabinet Office, this is published on the Cabinet Office website at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/payroll-costs-and-non-consolidated-pay-data and on data.gov.uk at http://data.gov.uk/dataset/workforce-management-information-cabinet-office .Information about the Cabinet Office workforce is also published in the Cabinet Office Annual Report and Accounts which are available at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/cabinet-office-annual-reports-and-accounts

Department for Culture Media and Sport

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) white British and (b) from any other ethnic background.

Mrs Helen Grant: The DCMS Executive Board has 7 white British members and 1 from any other ethnic background.

Mobile Phones

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the amount of time it would take to implement a successful system of national roaming.

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what analysis his Department has undertaken of the effect on mobile telephone battery life of a system of national roaming.

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the potential financial costs for consumers of a system of national roaming; and what discussions he has had with mobile telephone operators about the effect of those costs on consumer bills.

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what extra mobile telephone network and signalling infrastructure will be needed to deliver the Government's proposed system of national roaming; and how that infrastructure will be funded.

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the potential effect a system of national roaming would have on the frequency of dropped mobile telephone calls.

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on private investment in UK digital infrastructure of the introduction of a system of national roaming.

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what analysis he has made of the possibility of network outage contagion under a system of mobile national roaming.

Mr Edward Vaizey: I have recently consulted on potential measures to tackle partial not-spots in mobile phone coverage, including on national roaming. The consultation document and accompanying Impact Assessment set out my analysis of the potential impacts of each option under consideration on the telecoms industry and consumers.We received a large amount of new information in response to the consultation, including from the four UK mobile network operators (EE, Three, Telefonica, Vodafone). My officials are currently analysing this information ahead of a final policy decision.

Mobile Phones

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, which other countries have introduced a system of domestic national roaming; and whether any analysis has been made of the effect such a system has had on consumer bills, investment and network coverage in each such country.

Mr Edward Vaizey: National Roaming has been implemented in France on a localised level and in Australia on a voluntary basis between two operators, accessible to consumers on a subscription basis. The French and Australian models are outlined in my recent consultation on tackling partial not-spots in mobile phone coverage, however neither model correlates directly to the model of national roaming on which I have consulted.

Telecommunications

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when he plans to respond to the Law Commission's recommendations on a revised Electronic Communications Code (Law Commission Report No. 336), published on 28 February 2013.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Since the publication of the Law Commission’s report on the Electronic Communications Code, DCMS has been considering the implications of the recommendations on network roll out and service provision to consumers. In January 2014, we published an economic analysis of the impacts of various wayleave valuation regimes. A copy of this report has been placed in the House of Commons library.My officials are continuing to assess the implications of the Law Commission’s recommendations and I will make public my plans to reform the Electronic Communications Code in due course.

Mobile Phones

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of regulatory changes, other than national roaming, that could speed up the delivery of improved mobile telephone coverage.

Mr Edward Vaizey: I have recently consulted on potential measures to tackle partial not-spots in mobile phone coverage. The options under consultation were national roaming, infrastructure sharing, reforming virtual networks and a coverage obligation.Alongside this my officials are considering the implications of the Law Commission’s recommendations of reform on the Electronic Communications Code and how these impact on network roll out and service provision to consumers.

Mobile Phones

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when he plans to publish the Government's response to the recent consultation on Tackling Partial Not-Spots in Mobile Telephone Coverage.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The consultation on tackling partial not-spots closed on November 26. We received a large amount of new information in response to the consultation, including from the four UK mobile network operators (EE, Three, Telefonica, Vodafone). My officials are currently analysing this information ahead of a final policy decision. I will respond to the consultation in due course.

Mobile Phones

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of (a) the type and quantity of data to be shared under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 and (b) the additional costs that such data-sharing would incur should a system of national roaming be implemented.

Mr Edward Vaizey: I have recently consulted on potential measures to tackle partial not-spots in mobile phone coverage, including national roaming. The Impact Assessment noted the potential impact the various options, including national roaming, may have on law enforcement work.Additionally, during the consultation process, my officials held a series of discussions with the Home Office and the four UK mobile network operators (EE, Three, Telefonica, Vodafone) to consider further the impact of each measure on law enforcement. This, together with the responses received to the consultation, is informing our thinking on any potential impact of the consultation options.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many members of his Department's executive board are disabled.

Mrs Helen Grant: No members of the DCMS Executive Board are disabled.

Directors

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many members of his Department's executive board are (a) male and (b) female.

Mrs Helen Grant: The DCMS Executive Board has 1 male and 7 female members.

Football

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many times since 1 October 2011 Ministers or officials in his Department met (a) the FA, (b) the Premier League, (c) the Football League, (d) Supporters Direct and (e) the Football Supporters Federation to discuss setting up the expert working group on forging stronger links between football supporters and professional football clubs; and if he will make a statement.

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answers of 27 October 2014 to Questions 211478, 211477, 211479 and 211480, if he will publish the terms of reference of the expert working group on forging stronger links between football supporters and professional football clubs as soon as they are finalised; and if he will make a statement.

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether his Department's expert working group on forging stronger links between football supporters and professional football clubs has (a) finalised its terms of reference and (b) set a date by which it will conclude its work; and if he will make a statement.

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether he plans to invite representatives of the Football Supporters Federation and Supporters Direct to attend every meeting of his Department's expert working group on forging stronger links between football supporters and professional football clubs; and if he will make a statement.

Mrs Helen Grant: Ministers and officials meet with stakeholders across football on a regular basis. The Expert Working Group on Supporter Ownership and Engagement was developed in partnership with the football authorities and supporter representation groups and has their full support. The Group held its first meeting on the 25th November, and has issued a Call for Evidence and agreed Terms of Reference for the Group: these have been published on the DCMS website https://www.gov.uk/government/news/football-supporter-ownership-and-engagement-expert-working-group-issues-call-for-evidenceI expect initial recommendations from the Expert Group this parliament, and a full report later in 2015.

Horse Racing: Betting

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 29 October 2014 to Question 211606, whether he has met the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills or UKRep to discuss progress on extending the Horseracing Betting Levy to online companies; and if he will make a statement.

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to paragraph 2.113 of the Autumn Statement 2014, what assessment he has made of the consultation on the introduction of a horse racing betting levy for negotiations between his Department, UKRep and the European Commission on extending the existing horse racing betting levy to online companies; and if he will make a statement.

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when he expects negotiations between his Department, UKRep and the European Commission on extending the horse racing betting levy to online companies to conclude; and if he will make a statement.

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to paragraph 2.113 of the Autumn Statement 2014, by what date he expects the consultation on the horse racing betting levy to be completed; and if he will make a statement.

Mrs Helen Grant: I have not held any discussions with the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills or UKRep on this issue. I am determined to extend the Horserace Betting Levy to offshore operators. However simply extending the existing arrangements has proven more difficult than envisaged. Extension is now bound up with wider reform and we will seek to bring about extension either by reforming the Levy or replacing it with a racing right. A consultation on a racing right will allow us to make a full comparison between reform and replacement. The consultation will be launched early in the New Year. Once we have a preferred option we will discuss that with the European Commission.

Domestic Visits

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many times he has visited (a) the theatre, (b) the opera, (c) a live concert, (d) an exhibition and (e) a sporting event in an official capacity since taking up his post.

Mrs Helen Grant: Ministerial meetings are published quarterly on the Departmental website:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/313639/Transparency_Declarations_Oct-Dec_2013_csv.csv/preview

Furniture

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many desks are in his Department's main building; how many such desks are (a) owned and (b) leased by his Department; and what the cost is per desk of leasing.

Mrs Helen Grant: DCMS owns 305 desks and leases desk space from HMRC. The cost per desk is £10,309.63.

Public Libraries

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many libraries have faced the prospect of closure or being run by volunteer groups in the period (a) 1 April 2013 to 31 March 2014 and (b) since 1 April 2014.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Holding answer received on 11 December 2014



DCMS monitors proposals by Local Authorities for any changes to their library service provision however we do not collect information on the specific number of libraries that face the prospect of closure or run by volunteer groups. Our estimate of static library closures, for the period 1 April 2013 to 31 March 2014, based on consulting a number of sources is around 20.

Public Expenditure

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what level of underspend he expects in his Department in the current financial year.

Mrs Helen Grant: DCMS, alongside all other Whitehall departments, will set a final budget in the Supplementary Estimate. No underspend is currently expected.

Creative Industries Council

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the Answer of 6 September 2013, Official Report, column 563W, on Creative Industries Council, whether the meeting of the Creative Industries Council planned for 27 November 2013 went ahead; when the minutes of that meeting will be published on gov.uk; and how often that body will meet before May 2015.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The meeting of the Creative Industries Council (CIC) planned for 27 November 2013 went ahead and the minutes of that meeting have been published on the gov.uk website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/creative-industries-council. The CIC last met on 6 November 2014 and the minutes of this meeting will be published on the gov.uk website shortly. The Council is due to meet once more before May 2015.

Creative Industries Council

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the Answer of 6 September 2013, Official Report, column 563W, on Creative Industries Council, what the names are of the members of the subgroups of the Creative Industries Council; how often those subgroups have met since the Creative Industries Council was established; how often those subgroups will meet in the next 12 months; which subgroup meetings have been attended by (a) him, (b) Ministers in his Department and (c) other Ministers; and for each subgroup what proportion of its members have their principal workplace outside London.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The Creative Industries Council (CIC) has 5 sub-groups, to take forward the five priority work strands in the industry-led growth strategy for the sector. The chairs for each of the sub-groups is as follows: Strategy sub-group leads• Access to Finance: Caroline Norbury (Creative England)• Education & Skills: Dinah Caine (Creative Skillset)• Infrastructure: Tim Lefroy (Advertising Association)• Intellectual Property: Geoff Taylor (BPI)• International: Tim Davie (BBC Worldwide)As these sub-groups are industry-led, it is their responsibility to determine the frequency and membership of their meetings. I co-chair the Sector Advisory Group (SAG) with Tim Davie (BBC Worldwide), which covers the International work strand of the sector strategy, but Ministers do not attend other sub-group meetings. Some sub-group members are also members of the CIC, and the CIC represents a range of national, regional and local businesses and organisations.

Broadband: Urban Areas

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, for what reasons the connection vouchers super-connected cities on web page lists two cities as not super-connected.

Mr Edward Vaizey: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 15 December 2014.The correct answer should have been:

Liverpool and Nottingham are not participating cities in the Super-Connected Cities Programme. They are administering a local voucher scheme which is broadly based on the same principles and procedures as the BDUK scheme, but funding comes from sources other than the Urban Broadband Fund. There are 22 Super-Connected Cities in the UK. They are: Birmingham, Brighton & Hove, Bristol, Cambridge, Coventry, Derby, Leeds and Bradford, London, Manchester, Newcastle, Oxford, Portsmouth, Salford and York in England; Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Perth in Scotland; Cardiff and Newport in Wales; Belfast and Derry/Londonderry in Northern Ireland.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Liverpool and Nottingham are not participating cities in the Super-Connected Cities Programme. They are administering a local voucher scheme which is broadly based on the same principles and procedures as the BDUK scheme, but funding comes from sources other than the Urban Broadband Fund. There are 22 Super-Connected Cities in the UK. They are: Birmingham, Brighton & Hove, Bristol, Cambridge, Coventry, Derby, Leeds and Bradford, London, Manchester, Newcastle, Oxford, Portsmouth, Salford and York in England; Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Perth in Scotland; Cardiff and Newport in Wales; Belfast and Derry/Londonderry in Northern Ireland.

Broadband: Urban Areas

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many super-connected cities there are.

Mr Edward Vaizey: There are 22 Super-Connected Cities in the UK. They are: Birmingham, Brighton & Hove, Bristol, Cambridge, Coventry, Derby, Leeds and Bradford, London, Manchester, Newcastle, Oxford, Portsmouth, Salford and York in England; Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Perth in Scotland; Cardiff and Newport in Wales; Belfast and Derry/Londonderry in Northern Ireland.

Press

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what newspapers and magazines are circulated to the private offices of each of his Department's Ministers.

Mrs Helen Grant: The following newspapers and magazines are distributed to the private offices of DCMS ministers: The Financial Times, The Times, The Guardian, The Independent, The Telegraph, The Daily Mail, The Daily Express, The Sun, The Daily Mirror, The Spectator, The Racing Post.

South West

Sarah Newton: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if he will estimate how much his Department has spent in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly in each year since 2007-08.

Mrs Helen Grant: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

House of Commons Commission

House of Commons: Publications

Chi Onwurah: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross representing the House of Commons Commission, if he will make an assessment of the availability of books by women in the House of Commons bookshop.

John Thurso: I understand that the hon. Member raised the issue of the availability of books written by women with the Senior Retail Operations Manager, who explained that we are committed to the inclusion of women authors within our range and that it is our aim to fully represent women’s role in British politics wherever possible.In the current book range, we have a variety of titles by women including Women of the World by Helen McCarthy, Everyday Sexism by Laura Bates, Wise Women by Carole McKenzie, The Times: Great Women’s Lives by Sue Corbett and The Women’s Suffrage Movement by Molly Housego. A best seller earlier in the year was Baroness Trumpington’s book Coming Up Trumps.In making the range selection for the Houses of Parliament Shop, we are conscious of the need to present a political balance, and we seek books that shed light on British politics, Parliament and Government. In selecting individual titles we are constrained by what is available and in print at any one time. With limited retail space, it makes commercial sense to stock the current “best sellers”, whoever the authors are. Having said that, we do actively seek to include women authors and books about women within the range and will continue to do so.The Retail Buying team will always welcome suggestions on current titles in general circulation that would make a positive addition to the current book selection.